Elements
by artemisgirl
Summary: Aggravated and unable to understand his companions, Sesshomaru goes off by himself to relax, only to encounter a familiar miko. The priestess, Kagome, offers to teach him how to understand the world... and himself. SessKag
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello, dear reader! You seem to have stumbled upon _Elements_, a tale of the true meaning of love, understanding raw emotion, and self expression without words, centered around Kagome and Sesshomaru. Luckily for you, this authoress Artemis has written fanfiction before, so she knows what she is doing, to an extent. At the end, please leave a review, and share your thoughts with her.

And now, without further ado...

**Elements**

**Chapter 1**

"Ses-sho-mar-u!"

Sighing and rubbing his temples gently to ward off a headache, the great taiyoukai lord raised his head, glaring at his young ward, who was charging at him. While anyone else would have faltered at his harsh gaze, the girl ran forward, completely oblivious, and flung herself around his knees.

"Sesshomaru! Jaken says he won't let Rin eat unless Rin stops talking!" She looked up at him urgently. "But Rin does not want to stop talking! Rin just wants to eat!

Sesshomaru sighed again, pinching the bridge of his nose tightly in a rare show of exasperation. "Rin," he started. "Why does-"

"It is not true, Master!" A large, deformed-looking toad came hurtling out of the tall crab grass and immediately threw himself on the ground, lying prostrate in front of the sitting youkai lord. "It is not true!"

"Jaken," Sesshomaru said tiredly. "Get up."

"You lie!" Rin accused, pointing a tiny finger at the demon toad. "You said Rin could not eat unless she was quiet!"

Sesshomaru shut his eyes, the throbbing in his head growing quickly despite his efforts to the contrary.

"I only told the girl that you would not want to bother with her incessant ramblings, Sessshomaru-sama!" Jaken insisted. "And that if she kept being so noisy that-"

"You wanted Rin to starve!" Rin said dramatically.

Sesshomaru briefly wondered why he, a great taiyoukai lord, was listening to this senseless squabble.

"I said no such thing, my lord!" Jaken squawked indignantly. "I merely suggested that she be quiet, as you were tired and resting and might not want to feed her if she kept-"

"You lie!" Rin announced loudly. "Jaken said Rin could not eat unless-"

"-I was merely looking out for your best interest, my lord-"

"-but Rin likes to talk-"

"-disturbing your rest, master, so I-"

"-and Rin did not want to starve-"

"-child, lord, and she would-"

"-then Rin called Jaken a smelly-head because he would not give Rin food-"

"-merely trying to be of assistance to you-"

**"Enough!"**

Jaken and Rin both froze at the taiyoukai's commanding tones, watching as he rose to his feet.

"Jaken," he said, still pinching the bridge of his nose, "go find Rin some food."

"But, my lord-" Jaken objected.

Sesshomaru silenced him with a sharp look, making the toad stumble backwards, bowing deeply.

"Yes, my lord. Of course, my lord. Right away, my lord." Jaken stumbled off into the crabgrass, apparently too frightened to look back.

Rin watched Jaken go curiously.

"Did Jaken annoy Sesshomaru-sama?" she asked, her eyes wide.

"Rin," Sesshomaru said tiredly. His tone was firm, but gentle undertones of affection seemed to creep in. "Go back to the field with Ah-Un until Jaken brings you food. You may play in the flowers, but you must play _quietly_."

"Okay!" Rin agreed happily, throwing her arms around the taiyoukai's knees before skipping off towards the flower field, humming.

Sesshomaru watched her go, sighing. Having heard of a rumor of Naraku's location, he had resolved to depart from his palace, planning to slay the filthy hanyou once and for all. Jaken, his retainer, had insisted on coming along, and Rin had pleaded to join him as well, exclaiming that she didn't feel safe in the castle without Sesshomaru there. Grudgingly, he had let them both come with him, and they had set off with his dragon, following rumors to find their target.

Though they had been traveling for a little over a week, it seemed more like a century to Sesshomaru. If the two kept bickering like this, he didn't know how he would handle it. His famed icy demeanor was slipping more and more each moment he spent with them, and his irritation continued to grow at an alarming rate.

Deciding to go for a walk to relax somewhat before nightfall, Sesshomaru strode off into the woods, leaving the annoying child and the obnoxious toad behind.

He deserved this, at least, for his patience. A lesser demon than he would have slaughtered them days ago.

The trees thinned, and Sesshomaru found himself in a clearing. Such a clearing was a good place to lie down and relax in, he reasoned, moving forward. Something on the ground ahead of him shifted, and he was startled to see that a woman was lying down in the center of the field.

Slightly surprised that a woman would be in such a place on her own, he moved forward, planning to simply scare her off. He moved towards her silently, dimly wondering why he hadn't smelled her, when he felt a sudden rise in holy energy.

Stopping, Sesshomaru paused. It was a _miko_ in the meadow. He scowled. That explained why she was on her own, at least: she could fend for herself. It also made things more difficult. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the young priestess. She somehow seemed familiar...

The miko in question was lying down, her black hair spread out behind her. She seemed to be watching the sky, judging from the positioning of her head and eyes, though there was nothing odd to be seen. She seemed average enough.

Her clothes, however, were another story. The strange white and green cloth that exposed so much skin was highly recognizable, once noticed. The miko was InuYasha's wench, the strange girl who had been able to withdraw the Tessaiga. What was her name again? Kaede?

Sesshomaru froze, his eyes alight as the girl shifted, sitting up and turning to look directly at him. He tensed, his hand automatically going to Tokijin's hilt. Her eyes narrowed.

"Sesshomaru," the girl said, her tone carefully neutral.

"Human," he said shortly, placing his hand firmly around his sword. He felt Tokijin's evil aura pulse and grow beneath his hand, comforting him.

The girl tensed, and Sesshomaru felt her holy energy increase. The amount present in the tiny slip of a girl shocked him; it was much more than he had encountered before when they battled.

It was Sesshomaru's turn to tense. How was he to defeat an opponent who was obviously capable of countering his energy? His normal opponents were evil and weak youkai with no such capabilities.

The girl seemed to realize the same thing at the same time. Though Sesshomaru was sure she had conquered many a demon with her miko powers on her own, he doubted she had ever defeated one of his caliber before.

Strangely, the fact did not seem to upset her as it had him.

"Sesshomaru," the girl said again. There was an odd glint in her eyes, and it unsettled him.

"Miko," he responded curtly. He let his amber eyes bore into hers, hoping to scare her away. To his surprise, she smiled slightly.

"No need to be so formal," she commented. "Please, call me Kagome."

So _that_ was her name...

"Ka-go-me," he said, trying it out, finding it rolled off his tongue awkwardly. "Kagome," he tried again, this time pronouncing it correctly.

"There you go," she said, smiling at him. Sesshomaru frowned. This human dared to _smile_ at him.

"Kagome," he said, drawing himself up. "You will remove your person from this clearing," he told her, his tone filled with malice. "This Sesshomaru wishes to rest here."

To his astonishment, the girl's smile grew.

"No, I don't think I will," she said, amused. "I'm quite content where I am, thanks."

"It was not a request, human," he growled, his eyes flashing. "I wish to lie in this field – alone."

"All the same, I think I'll stay," Kagome said easily. "After all, I _was_ here first..."

"Wench," Sesshomaru snapped, his patience wearing thin. He was not used to lowly humans defying him. "If you do not move-"

"Back to general terms instead of names again, are we?" she cut in, her eyes sparkling. "And do not threaten me. It is not as if you can force me to leave."

"Human," he snarled, withdrawing Tokijin, "I can kill you in an instant with the aura of this blade alone."

"And I can purify _you_ in an instant with _my_ aura," she returned, smirking.

Sesshomaru internally scowled. A mere _miko_ dared to challenge him? He flexed his claws.

"This Sesshomaru could slash your head off with these claws before you have time to react," he threatened, poison dripping from his nails.

"While I may not react quick enough, my powers could," Kagome told him. "They would form a shield to repel any attacks as soon as you move to harm me, if you so chose."

"The shield would repel your whip as well as your claws," she added, seeing him open his mouth again.

Sesshomaru tried to refrain from glowering at her as hestrained to keep his composure. First Rin and Jaken's argument had left him irritated, and now, a mere girl had somehow bested him in a verbal battle of wits? This was _infuriating_.

"It appears we are at an impasse, then," he said coolly, sheathing his sword, regarding her with disdain.

"Not at all," she said, smiling. She moved over, patting the flattened grass beside her. "Come sit with me," she invited.

Sesshomaru frowned in a rare display of emotion. "Join you?" he asked, his tone carefully measured. This whelp of a girl thought she was worthy to sit with _him_?

"Sure," Kagome replied, patting the ground again. "Seeing as we both want to use this field, we can share it."

"You would relax in the face of your enemy?" he asked, his eyes narrowing to slits.

Kagome met his gaze unflinchingly.

"Yes," she said coolly.

Internally smirking, he moved to sit beside the girl.

Fool. Did she think that they were _friends_ just because they had merely exchanged a few polite words? He could slay her in a second, with her guard so relaxed, miko shield or not! He could take her life in an instant! Watching as the infuriating girl relaxed beside him, he resolved to do just that.

Flexing his claws until they dripped with poison, Sesshomaru turned and swiped. A ripping sound was heard as his claws seared though her clothes and flesh, and his lips curled upward in an evil smile.

There was a bright flash of pink light, and Sesshomaru found himself being hurled through the air away from the miko, landing hard on the ground several meters away in a rather undignified slump. Snarling, he tried to get up to teach the girl a lesson, only to find he could not.

His eyes widened in astonishment as he saw her get to her feet, dusting her skirt off, very clearly alive. Her shirt was torn where his claws had ripped it, but otherwise, she stood no evidence of the fatal wound.

But how could that be? Was it possible for _her_, a mere miko, to survive such a killing stroke and to paralyze _him_, a mighty taiyoukai lord, in the same breath?

Kagome turned to face him fully, walking closer. A sad smile graced her face.

"You think I don't know how to defend myself from youkai?" she asked, her tone tired. "My miko powers are strong. Were you a lesser demon, you would be dead."

Sesshomaru knew with absolute certainty that she was speaking the truth. _Strong_ seemed to be a bit of an understatement in regard to her abilities...

Kagome crouched down, peering at him. Her cool blue eyes met his own amber, and he was surprised at the depth of the pain he saw there.

"I thought I could trust you," she remarked, looking away. "I find now that I was mistaken."

Without another word, she stood up, turning to go.

"The paralysis will wear off after a while," she commented, not bothering to look back as she walked off into the woods, leaving him there, sprawled in the grass, alone with his inner musings.

What a _strange_ girl. Other than InuYasha, she was the only one to ever survive a fatal blow from him, and _she_ had even escaped unscathed, a feat his brother had not accomplished.

What kind of miko _was_ she? He had never known any other like her and had certainly never heard of such power before.

She acted differently from other mikos as well. Her attire, for one, was nothing short of scandalous, as opposed to the traditional modest garb of a priestess. Her words and mannerisms were different as well, unique from that of others.

A memory of the pain in her eyes flickered into his vision, and Sesshomaru was surprised to note he felt somewhat guilty for causing part of it.

Shaking his head to rid himself of such thoughts,Sesshomaru realized that he could move. Wincing slightly, he slowly got to his feet, his body aching in protest. The miko's attack had apparently injured him more than he thought.

Glancing at the sky and the setting sun, Sesshomaru decided enough time had passed, and he moved to return to Jaken and Rin.

As he entered the forest, Sesshomaru cast a glance back at the field, his eyes automatically focusing on the place where the miko had lain, and he couldn't help but wonder when he would see the strange girl again.

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Please, on your way out, leave a review. Let me know what you think, tell me if you like it, yell at me to update, or whatever suits your fancy. :P

Please, review!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Many thanks to everyone who reviewed! I appreciate and cherish every review I get. Thanks!

**Elements**

**Chapter 2**

"Sesshomaru-sama!" Jaken exclaimed, guiltily dropping a fish from his hands as the taiyoukai emerged from the trees. "You have returned!"

Sesshomaru restrained himself from rolling his eyes. "That much is obvious, Jaken," he commented. He looked around the clearing, examining what had been done.

Jaken, obedient to a fault, had started a fire, which was crackling merrily in the center of the area. Rin was happily eating a cooked fish by the fire, not a care in the world. Jaken sulked around, holding the fish he had dropped in surprise.

"Hiiii, Sesshomaru-sama!" Rin said happily, waving. "Jaken cooked Rin and Jaken fish because you told him to. Thanks!"

Sesshomaru waved her thanks off carelessly, moving stiffly to sit down across the fire from Rin, his muscles still aching. He picked up a fish and sniffed it thoughtfully before taking a bite. Jaken sighed audibly in relief.

"Isn't Jaken-sama's fish good?" Rin asked. "Rin likes fish!"

"It is adequate," Sesshomaru acknowledged, taking another bite. Rin smiled.

The clearing was silent for a while as everyone ate, intent on their dinner. Sesshomaru idly picked at the scales of his fish in between bites, his mind journeying back to the miko he had encountered earlier.

"Jaken," he said suddenly, "do you know of the miko that travels with InuYasha?"

"You mean that Kaede wench?" the toad asked, startled.

"Kagome," Sesshomaru corrected idly. Jaken's eyes widened in surprise. "What do you know of her?"

"Well," Jaken said, scratching his head. "She supposedly comes from a far off domain, judging from her attire, my lord. She seemed to have dedicated her life to finding the Shikon shards," he added. "Rumor has it she's the reincarnation of the priestess Kikyo." He looked at him anxiously, as if waiting for the reaction to his words.

"Reincarnation?" Sesshomaru said dubiously.

"Yes," Jaken said, apparently relieved that his master had not struck him down. "She seems too young, as reincarnations usually take hundreds of years to occur, but the fact remains that she is, my lord."

"I see," Sesshomaru said, considering. With such strange origins, it was no wonder she was so unusual. "What else do you know of her?"

"She is very kind to everyone," Jaken said, "youkai and ningen alike. She has adopted an orphaned kitsune, and most in her party she met when they were trying to kill her."

"Fool," Sesshomaru remarked, scornful. What kind of person would forgive those who tried to kill her? Then again, she had defended herself rather admirably when _he_ had tried to kill her, so it wasn't as if she was in overt danger. If anything, her comrades should be wary...

"Indeed, lord," the toad agreed. "They have become powerful allies, however. The monk in particular is-"

"This Sesshomaru cares not about the miko's companions," Sesshomaru dismissed, waving his hand. "Speak of the miko's powers."

"Of course, my lord," Jaken said hurriedly. "The girl has immense raw power, though she has never received any formal training as a miko. I have heard of waves of purification radiating off of her when she is angry enough."

"Rin likes Kagome-san," Rin piped up, joining the conversation. Sesshomaru's eyes widened imperceptibly.

"How do you know Kagome?" Sesshomaru asked, not letting his surprise seep into his tone.

"Kagome-san came and saw Rin once when you and Jaken-sama were somewhere else," Rin told him. "She asked Rin about you and gave Rin something sweet things to eat. Then she made Rin a necklace of flowers."

Sesshomaru's mind briefly flashed back to when he had seen such a garland around Rin's neck. She _had _seemed more energetic than usual...

"Tell me, Rin," he commanded. "Did you ask Kagome _why_ she had come to see you?"

"Yes!" Rin said. "Rin was curious as to why, so she asked Kagome-san. Kagome-san said that InuYasha was being a baka. She said she had to 'sit' him and she was so mad she had to go think away from him." Rin looked over at Sesshomaru, waiting for his approval.

So, his brother was being an idiot, Sesshomaru mused. That was nothing new. What took him by surprise was the fact that InuYasha angered the miko so much that she would go away from him from time to time. It also seemed as if she had some sort of control over him. Sesshomaru wondered what a 'sit' was.

"Did she say what InuYasha had done?" he asked carefully. Rin frowned.

"Kagome-san said something about InuYasha being 'hypocritical' and 'insensitive' and 'a jerk off'," Rin said, remembering. "Rin asked what those words meant, but Kagome-san just laughed and said that Rin would understand when she was older. Rin could tell Kagome-san was sad though. Rin could see it in her eyes."

Sesshomaru frowned, thinking. Rin's encounter with Kagome sounded much like his own. Both times, she was alone and had gone to a clearing. She had been unarmed, yet unworried. Also, both times she had been hurting on the inside as well. Sesshomaru bit his lip, thinking.

"Sesshomaru-sama?" Rin's tentative voice broke his train of thought, and he turned to see his ward looking at him, concerned. "Is Sesshomaru-sama okay?"

He looked at the young girl. She looked up at him with wide eyes, clearly worried, and his face softened.

"Yes," he said, a rare smile gracing his face. "Tell me one more thing, Rin. After Kagome left you, what did she do?"

"Kagome-san went to go shoot arrows at a tree," Rin said promptly. "Rin remembers because Kagome-san could shoot them in the dark, though Rin could not see. But then Kagome-san did something, and they gave off pretty pink light."

Here, Rin yawned hugely, and Sesshomaru looked around, surprised to note how quickly night had fallen. Standing up in one smooth move, he shook out his kimono.

"Jaken," he commanded. "You are to put Rin to bed and protect her as she sleeps."

"Are you going somewhere, my lord?" Jaken asked, slightly startled at the sudden request.

"Yes," Sesshomaru said, casting a withering look at the kappa for questioning him as he turned and strode out of the fire circle, heading for the forest.

"Is it to do with the miko, my lord?"

Sesshomaru turned back slowly, fixing Jaken with an icy glare, who looked like he regretted calling after the taiyoukai already.

"Yes," he said curtly, his eyes flashing, Jaken visibly flinching at his cutting tone. "Do not question me again, Jaken. You would do well to remember your place."

With a dramatic flourish of his robes, Sesshomaru vanished into the woods.

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_**THWOK!**_

Kagome smiled grimly as her arrow hit the tree bark hard, embedding itself into the wood. Withdrawing another arrow from her quiver, she took aim, pulled back on her bowstring, and let it fly.

_**THWOK!**_

The arrow made a satisfying thud upon impact, nailing the precise spot she had been aiming at. She was getting better at this.

_**THWOK!**_

InuYasha should see her now, she thought. She was constantly hitting her target, in the _dark_, no less. She was also controlling her miko powers from spilling out onto her arrows, which wasn't nearly as easy as it seemed, given the emotional state she was currently in.

_**THWOK!**_

Her arrow landed firmly in the tree, a leaf impaled around the shaft, having been hit in midair as it drifted to the ground.

_**THWOK!**_

Her old arrow split as the new one sliced through it, splitting it like a banana, landing in the _exact _spot as before. Kagome smirked. No one could criticize her aim _now._

Deciding that was enough pure archery, Kagome lowered her bow. Closing her eyes and finding her center, she called upon her power, channeling it through her and into an arrow. Raising her bow, she took careful aim, before spinning on the spot suddenly, loosing the arrow.

_**THWOK!**_

The arrow landed flaming pink in a tree, scant inches from a familiar silver head, embellished with strange markings and cold, amber eyes.

"I could have hit you, you know," Kagome commented, turning back to her target practice. "I can see in the dark. I could have an arrow straight through your thick skull for trying to kill me earlier. You'd be dead before you knew it, and you wouldn't have known what hit you. No one's reflexes are _that_ quick, Sesshomaru-sama."

Kagome smiled to herself, sensing the taiyoukai lord's obvious surprise and discomfort. It must have been a shock to him. He had been masking his presence, yet she had still known he was there.

Loosing another, a vivid pink trail burned in the air behind her arrow as it hit the tree, the power gradually dissipating into the darkness of the night.

"Why didn't you?"

Kagome glanced over as the taiyoukai stemmed forward, his face an emotionless mask, despite her near miss.

"I didn't want to hurt you," Kagome replied, watching as another bright pink arrow hit her target with a satisfying _thwok_.

"You did not want to hurt me?" he repeated, his tone blank.

"That's what I said," she responded, restraining herself from rolling her eyes. Notching another arrow, she noticed his vacant expression. Sighing, she elaborated.

"I only wanted to give you a warning that I knew you were there," Kagome explained. "I didn't want to kill you." She let the arrow fly, nailing her target in a blaze of pink glory once again.

"Why not?" Sesshomaru asked, his tone emotionless.

Kagome gaped at him. "You've done nothing to deserve death," she said, astonished, lowering her bow. "Why do you ask?"

He ignored her query.

"This Sesshomaru has tried to kill you many times," he interjected.

"So has the rest of the world," Kagome said dismissively, waving her hand. "That alone doesn't deserve death, and even if it did, I wouldn't kill you."

"Why not?" Sesshomaru asked, clearly not comprehending.

Kagome gaped at him. Was it just demon tradition to kill someone if their own life was threatened, or did he just have a ruthless impression of her and the rest of human kind?

"Have you never heard of _mercy_?" she said incredulously. "You have a _daughter_, for Kami's sake! I'm not about to make her an orphan _again_!"

"You are speaking of Rin," he said flatly. Kagome nodded.

"She's been through so much already. I'm hardly about to take her surrogate father from her," Kagome pointed out. "Why? Do you have a death wish or something?"

Sesshomaru just looked at her blankly.

"Fine, then," she muttered. "Ignore me." Raising her bow and notching an arrow, she continued her target practice as if his interruption had never occurred, pointedly ignoring the taiyoukai.

The taiyoukai, however, seemed inclined to stay and watch her, for whatever reasons. Sighing, Kagome put the strange youkai lord from her mind and focused on why she had come here in the first place, channeling her miko energy.

Her frustration gave her a burst of power, and the flaming pink arrow vaporized a large chunk of bark from the tree on contact, the arrow clattering to the ground. Kagome smiled thinly and conjured up the image of InuYasha's infuriating face from earlier onto the tree. With another arrow, the rest of the tree vaporized in a flash of angry pink light, leaving only scattered ashes and singed wood chips behind.

"What has the hanyou done?" Sesshomaru asked suddenly. Kagome turned to regard him, lowering her bow.

"You mean InuYasha?" she asked. At his affirmative nod, she sighed.

"InuYasha... isn't the easiest person to get along with," she admitted. "He's not very good at understanding things."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. Kagome sighed and raised her bow once again.

"InuYasha acts as if I belong to him," she said, letting another arrow fly. "It irritates me to no end."

"Why?" he asked, his amber eyes watching her load another arrow.

"He has already chosen Kikyo," she told him, launching an angry pink arrow, sending a small raccoon youkai running away, "so he has no right to interfere in my own romantic life. Yet, still, when another man indicates his interest in me as a woman, not just as a mere miko, he becomes enraged."

"You have feelings for him," Sesshomaru said flatly.

Kagome turned to look at him curiously. Was it her imagination, or was there a jealous undertone in his voice?

"I don't know anymore," Kagome said honestly. "I know that I did, once, but now... I'm not so sure. My emotions towards him have lessened somewhat, since his choice, but I'm not sure to what degree."

Kagome looked at him sideways. "I don't know why I'm telling you all this," she informed him. "I don't think you even care. You're probably bored out of your mind, listening for juicy tidbits that will help you seize the Tessaiga."

Sesshomaru just looked at her.

"Well, too bad for you," Kagome told him. "I'm not that stupid. I'm going to talk about what I want to talk about, and if you don't like it, you can go away."

His amber eyes watched her blankly, his face betraying no response.

"Showing no emotion, eh?" she commented. "InuYasha's the same." She lifted her head, turning to look away, deep in thought.

"Perhaps I'm too unreasonable towards men in general," Kagome mused. "I want a guy who understands emotions and feelings, but I don't know if that's even _possible_."

"Like with Koga," Kagome continued, talking aloud, not necessarily to Sesshomaru anymore. It just felt _good _to talk about everything bothering her, even if no one was listening. Almost... therapeutic.

"Koga says he loves me," she said, "and he very well may. But when I ask him how he knows he loves me, he starts listing what he likes about me. It's the same with Hojo. The put everything into words. They don't seem to realize that sometimes, you can't define something with mere words."

She turned, looking up at the stars, her arms wise. "It's like the sky. Sure, you can describe the sky. You can talk about the stars, the planets, the colors, but can you _understand_ it? Understanding defies words. You either do or you don't. You can't explain it. You just _can't_."

She sighed, lowering her arms. She turned to look at Sesshomaru, who was still watching her, his eyes following her every move.

"I have to go," she said, slinging her bow over her back. "Not that you care, but my friends will worry if I'm away too long."

She set off into the forest, waving goodbye and calling back, "It was nice talking to you, Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru watched as she vanished into the trees, before silently going back the way he had come.

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Please, leave a review on your way out. I love to hear what my readers think. It helps me become motivated to update quicker, too.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: It took a while for me to figure out where I wanted this to go, and then a while to write it. In this chapter, we take a glance at the relationship between InuYasha and Kagome because, clearly, there's something there, and it needs to be addressed before all the lovely Sesshomaru/Kagome goodness can come to pass. Eternal gratitude to Authoress Mujitsu, InuYasha beta-reader extrodinaire.

Many thanks to all those who reviewed! Please, continue to review! I love hearing what my readers think!

**Elements**

**Chapter 3**

"Kagome!" Sango rushed over to Kagome, who was just entering the camp. "Where've you been? Are you okay? What happened to your shirt?" she whispered frantically. She seemed to be making sure not to wake the sleeping kitsune that lay by the fire, but she was obviously worried for her friend.

Kagome looked down at her torn blouse, realizing just how large the slit in it was. "Oh," she said faintly. "I'd forgotten that had happened."

"If you wish to leave your shirt that way," Miroku leered at her from across the fire, "by all means, do."

"Hentai," Sango muttered, moving to shield Kagome from the perverted monk's view. "What happened, though? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Kagome reassured her. "I tripped over a root while I was running and tore my shirt on a bush as I fell. That's all." She looked at Sango warily, feeling slightly guilty about lying to her, but the look of relief that crossed her friend's face was so palpable that any thought of telling her the truth of Sesshomaru's attempt on her life vanished from her mind.

"Thank Kami," Sango said quietly. "The last thing we need is InuYasha flipping out because you've gotten hurt."

"Where is InuYasha?" Kagome asked, being sure to keep her voice down. "Are he and Koga still fighting?"

Sango cast a glance back at Kaede's hut, before turning back to Kagome.

"He got back a while ago," she said quietly. "Kaede's in there, looking at his wounds."

Kagome gasped. "Are you serious?" she asked. "They usually don't fight too badly anymore."

"Koga really laid into InuYasha after you ran off," Sango told her. "He kept yelling about how obviously upset you were with InuYasha. He didn't seem to know that you've been going off on your own lately."

"Kami," Kagome breathed. "Is InuYasha okay?"

"He's wounded, but he'll heal fairly quickly," Sango said. "InuYasha eventually got angry enough that he stopped holding back and used the wind scar on Koga. After that, the fight was pretty much over, as Koga was unconscious. His wolf friends carried him off."

A sharp yell came from the hut. Sango sighed.

"You should go let InuYasha know that you're back," she told Kagome. "He might quiet down then, before he wakes Shippo."

Kagome smiled tiredly, nodding.

"I suppose you're right," she said, walking towards the hut. "I'll go talk to him."

Reaching the hut and pushing aside the bangles that hung in the doorway, Kagome swooned, nearly overcome with the scent of blood. Shaking her head, she entered the room to see InuYasha, cuts scattered across his skin, his clothes soaked in blood, fending off Kaede, snarling at her while she tried to bandage a cut on his cheek. They both froze as Kagome entered, turning to look at her.

"Kagome!" InuYasha exclaimed, his face happy and his eyes sparkling, betraying his joy at seeing her. As if catching himself, his face quickly hardened, and he glared at her. "Where've you been?" he demanded. His eyes trailed lower. "And what happened to your shirt?" he asked, his eyes fixed on the tear in her blouse.

"I am glad to see ye back, Kagome," Kaede smiled thinly. "InuYasha has been most disagreeable since your departure."

"Feh!" InuYasha snorted, turning to glare at the old woman. Kagome hid a smile.

"Kaede, I'll take over from here," she said, falling to her knees beside the wounded hanyou. "I'll treat his wounds."

Kaede slowly got to her feet, her age evident in the way she moved. "Go ahead, child," she bid, leaving the hut, "and good luck to ye. Ye shall sorely need it."

"Shut up, you old crone!" InuYasha shot back, scowling after her. Kagome smirked.

"Can't you be nice?" she remarked. "Kaede's only trying to help"

"I don't need her help," he scoffed. Kagome smiled, before focusing on the task at hand.

"InuYasha," she said. "You need to take off your haori so I can get to your wounds."

"I don't _need_ you to treat my wounds," he said, turning to sneer at her. "I can heal on my own."

"You're _dripping_ with blood," Kagome said, incredulous. "Even you can't heal such large wounds quickly."

"It's mostly Koga's," InuYasha said dismissively, waving his hand. Kagome looked nauseated. "I only have a couple scratches."

"They look like deep gashes to me," she said, looking at the slice on his cheek pointedly.

"Scratches, gashes, it's all the same," he said airily. "They don't need looked at. They'll heal on their own." He tuned away defiantly, pointedly breaking eye contact.

Kagome looked at him, internally sighing. Didn't he know she only wanted to help?

Kagome sighed. Turning to face him completely, she looked directly into his eyes. His golden orbs widened slightly as her intense blue eyes met his own.

"InuYasha," she said quietly, reaching out and caressing his slit cheek. He winced visibly, pain in his eyes at the sharp sting of the contact. She smiled softly. "Don't you understand?" she whispered. Her hand glowed with a soft pink light, and when she pulled her hand away, his cut was gone.

"I can make you feel better, InuYasha," she said gently, watching as he touched his cheek in disbelief. "Not because I _need_ to, but because I _want_ to. I want to help."

InuYasha looked at her squarely, his eyes boring into her own, before tugging his haori over his head, followed by his gi. Kagome's eyes widened at the thick gashes and bruises that scattered his chest. Tossing his clothes aside, he lay back on the futon, watching Kagome, who was still staring at his bare chest. Kaede must have gotten him to bathe, she realized, still looking at him. Although the wounds remained, there was no sign of dried or wet blood.

Swallowing heavily, Kagome ran her hand across his chest, pausing on a particularly deep wound on his right bicep. InuYasha's golden eyes bored into her as she summoned her miko power, making her squirm.

She felt him stiffen under her hand as she channeled her healing energy into the cut, tingling pink sparks dancing from her hand to his chest, magically sewing up the wound. Her heart hammered as the gash closed under her palm, a thin scar forming and then vanishing, leaving only his smooth skin behind.

"I didn't know you could heal wounds," InuYasha said, his voice slightly husky. "Is this what you're practicing whenever you go off into the woods on your own?"

Kagome glanced up, her breath catching in her throat as she met his burning gaze. "Sometimes," she said softly, quickly looking away. Something about him was different, something in his voice and his eyes. It was making her feel warm.

Breathing heavily, Kagome traced her hand over to his left bicep, where another gash lay. Placing her hand on the wound, she summoned her power again.

His heart was beating as fast as hers, she realized, as she felt it hammering underneath her hand. She glanced up as she healed the cut, meeting his intense gaze.

InuYasha's eyes smoldered with passion, the golden irises darkened to deep amber pools, flickers of desire rippling across the surface. She watched, entranced, as his eyes lowered slightly to regard the slit in her shirt which hung open, clearly exposing her, before raising his gaze back to her own, a hungry look coming over face.

Kagome tore her eyes away from his, flushing while the wound finished knitting itself together. Desperately trying to focus, she ventured an attempt at conversion.

"Koga did this to you?" she asked, moving on to a slash at the end of his sternum.

"Yeah." InuYasha's voice was husky when he spoke, the deep timbre of his words resonating through her body.

"I don't understand why you and Koga fought so furiously," Kagome remarked as she channeled her energy once again, desperately trying to distract herself from the hanyou's half-naked body. "Sure, you don't like each other, but you usually get along relatively well, now that you're both united against Naraku."

"Koga – he wanted to claim you," InuYasha said darkly.

Kagome looked at him oddly.

"What's that mean?" she asked, not understanding. "How do you claim someone?"

InuYasha looked away.

"Don't worry about it," he said, shifting uncomfortably. "I took care of it."

Kagome looked at him for a moment longer. It was obvious that he wasn't going to tell her, for whatever reasons. She sighed, before moving on to a particularly deep gash.

The nasty-looking graze seemed to have things oozing within it, like shadow demons or something. Unfortunately, the wound was located on his side, just above his hip and waistband, one of the most sensitive places on the body. Biting her lip, she pushed her healing power into the wound, trying not to pay attention to just how soft the skin she found was there.

Seemingly against her will, her fingertips softly stroked his side as the pink healing sparks danced about his cut, working their magic as her fingernails dragged lightly across his skin. InuYasha's eyes closed, and he let out a low groan of sorts.

Kagome looked up. "Am I hurting you?" she asked, a tinge of worry in her voice. The _last_ thing she wanted to do was make the damage worse. His eyes flickered open, molten pools of gold meeting her own blue.

"No," he said. His voice seemed strained. "It – it doesn't hurt."

Kagome frowned. "What's wrong?" she asked quietly, her concern becoming evident in her tone. "Am I not healing you right? I can stop, if need be."

"No. Don't stop," InuYasha said quickly. His voice had that husky quality again, and it was making her shiver slightly. "It doesn't hurt. It just feels – different."

Kagome looked at him oddly, not understanding. He certainly wasn't being very clear.

Internally shrugging, figuring he could deal with his own problems if he didn't have the gall to tell her what was wrong, she slid her hand across his abdomen to a gash on his far side, pausing briefly when her forearm bumped into something. Glancing down as she began healing the cut, she saw that she had hit some sort of bulge in his hakama, before refocusing on healing the wound, determined to do it properly.

It took her a moment for the implication of what she had just seen to register.

Whirling her head around, Kagome looked back at the bulge strategically located at his groin, her eyes widening as the realization of just what that bulge was dawned.

Oh.

Oh my.

He– he was– she had– he– he–

He was _aroused._

Kagome bit her lip, her face coloring violently. She hadn't expected _that_.

As if realizing that she had figured it out, InuYasha looked up at her silently, his eyes meeting hers, desire burning in the depths of his liquid eyes. She quickly looked away, struggling to concentrate. Healing _wasn't _easy, and she _couldn't_ give in to distractions.

At least she knew what the odd feeling he had been referring to earlier was, most likely. The pink healing sparks were tickling her hand as she healed him, and she could only imagine what the tingling felt like as it danced about his bruises and coursed through his blood to stop infections. No _wonder_ he had reacted in such a way.

It was very distracting, however, to feel him pulse beneath her forearm as the wound began to sew itself up.

Kagome jerked her thoughts away from that, shivering slightly as strange tingles went through her body. It was only a natural physiological reaction, she reminded herself firmly. It wasn't _her_ his body was responding to; it was a side effect of the healing.

Still, she couldn't help but remember how hungrily he had been looking at her body earlier through the hole in her shirt.

Finally, the wound finished closing, a scar quickly forming and vanishing from sight. Kagome sat back, letting out a sigh of relief. She looked up at the hanyou, a tired but triumphant smile on her face.

"All done," she said softly.

InuYasha turned to look at her. She smiled at him.

"I'm pretty sure I healed you correctly," she said, smiling. "I've been working it for a while. I'm glad I could help you."

InuYasha just looked at her.

Kagome shifted slightly, wondering why he wasn't saying anything.

"Well, let me know if you start to hurt again," she said. "If you do, I can- mmph!"

Kagome's words were abruptly cut off as InuYasha's lips crashed down onto her own, kissing her passionately as he held her close, one hand holding the back of her head while the other arm snaked around her waist. She gasped from shock, and he took advantage of her open mouth, deepening the kiss, his tongue slipping into her mouth and ravaging it fervently.

Kagome felt as if her world was crashing down around her. Colors and memories and emotions swirled inside of her, like a giant whirlpool had taken the place of her middle. She didn't know _what_ to feel. As if trying to help, random thoughts started flashing across her mind, telling her exactly what was going on, as if she didn't already know.

InuYasha was kissing her! _Her!_ InuYasha _never_ kissed her! He kissed Kikyo, maybe, but never her! She had wanted him to kiss her before, many a time, but he never did. But here he was, kissing her, for no apparent reason! _What_ was going on?

Kagome was lost.

"InuYasha, Sango wants you to- oh."

Before she knew what was going on, InuYasha had quickly pulled away and stood up, leaving her swaying and unbalanced on the floor, stunned, wondering what had just happened. She turned to see Miroku standing in the doorway, a knowing smirk on his face, making her blush.

"What?" InuYasha snapped at the monk, clearly irritated.

"Forgive me for interrupting," the houshi said, bowing deeply. "I have a message to deliver. I did not know you were otherwise... engaged. I shall leave you alone, if you wish to continue your... activities."

Kagome's looked down, her face flaming. She wondered why _she _was so embarrassed when she hadn't done anything, while InuYasha, the initiator of the embrace, didn't seem affected by Miroku's sudden intrusion at all, save for his anger.

"Forget it," InuYasha said dismissively. "What do you need?"

"It's not that important," Miroku commented. "Really, if you and Kagome are busy, I'm sure it can wait-"

"Spit it out!" InuYasha snapped, angry. "What do you need?"

Miroku looked taken aback at his harsh tone, but quickly composed himself.

"Sango requests that you come and sniff around the camp," Miroku dutifully told him. "She believes there may be a youkai nearby and wants you to check it out, if your wounds are healed..."

"I'm fine," InuYasha said curtly, striding past Miroku and out of the hut without so much as a backward glance a Kagome. "I'll take a look around."

Kagome watched numbly as he left, disbelief etched into her features. She felt like she had just been stabbed in her stomach with a dagger, before it was twisted and roughly yanked back out. Her eyes stayed fixed on the spot InuYasha had just been in, her finger coming up to trace her lips numbly.

He had kissed her, for the first time, and then he had left her suddenly, acting like nothing had happened. Why? How could he kiss someone like that one moment and then be so emotionally vacant the next? Had he just been craving contact with someone because he was turned on, no matter who it was? Why had he just run off, even though Miroku had said that he didn't need to go? Didn't he want to stay with her? Did she really mean so little to him that he felt he could do whatever he wanted to with her, regardless of her feelings on the matter?

Miroku looked at Kagome, taking in the hurt expression on her face, apparently gathering what had happened from the little bit he had seen. She looked away, trying not let him see the tears glistening in her eyes. Wiping them away, she stood up and straightened out her clothes, before looking up to meet Miroku's violet gaze.

"Are you okay, Kagome?" he asked quietly. Kagome smiled a sad smile that did not reach her eyes.

"I will be," she said softly. "It just hurts to know that while I still care for him, he just sees me as a tool, to be used and cast aside."

"Kagome-chan, he cares for you on some level-" Miroku began.

"Yes, but not the same level I care for him," Kagome shot back, interrupting. Miroku fell silent, and Kagome sighed, before walking out of the hut, Miroku following after her.

InuYasha was arguing with Sango in hushed tones, waving his hands about, while Sango stood in front of him, arms folded, clearly annoyed. Kagome paused a ways from the camp, her keen senses letting her see through the dark and overhear parts of their conversation. It was at times like these that she was most grateful for this part of her enhanced powers.

"I'm telling you, there's a youkai watching us right this very minute!" InuYasha told Sango harshly. "What if it's a minion of Naraku? We should go after it now!"

"InuYasha, it's late," Sango reasoned. "If the demon were after us, surely it would have attacked by now. It's probably just a harmless raccoon youkai or something."

"No, it's not!" InuYasha insisted. "Whoever this youkai is, they're masking their presence! That takes a very skilled demon to do! We can't sleep with such a threat hanging over our heads!"

"I wish I hadn't mentioned the matter to you now, baka," Sango grumbled. "I'm going to sleep. It hasn't attacked us yet, and it's obviously not going to."

InuYasha was obviously completely intent on this strange intruder and the discussion. He had clearly forgotten what had just transpired between them in the hut minutes before.

Kagome tuned out their conversation. Miroku was looking at her curiously. Kagome wasn't surprised; she hadn't mentioned what all she could do now to her friends yet.

Kagome sighed and looked up at the stars, as if searching for answers. She knew _she_ wouldn't have been able to forget what had occurred nearly so easily.

Why did she care, anyway? She _knew_ InuYasha was a mentally and emotionally unstable person. She practically _expected _him to react in stupid and hurtful ways, she was so accustomed to him. He was a dangerous, volatile half-demon with a possessive dtreak who didn't like anyone to get in his way. He was selfish, he was mean, and he was nasty.

Kagome knew all this. She knew it, and she had known it for as long as she had known InuYasha. She knew this so well it was practically engraved on the back of her mind.

But if she knew all this, why did it still hurt so much?

Kagome sighed. She hadn't _meant_ to fall in love with the hanyou. She certainly hadn't intended for such a thing to occur. And if she had meant to fall in love with someone, she would have fallen for someone who would at least return the feeling, like Koga or Hojo.

It wasn't like she could change it, though. Love tended to be annoying like that; resisting all attempts at alteration or rejection. Love was insane like that, driving all it touched mad, in a way.

"There is always madness in love," she remarked, reflecting.

"Hai," Miroku said quietly. "But there is always reason in madness, Lady."

Kagome turned to look at him, considering.

His words made sense, in a way. There _were _reasons, she supposed, that she had fallen for InuYasha, even though she had known she would ultimitely be hurt. Besides physical attraction, she was by him all the time, wasn't she? And he had protected her and been her friend for a long time, just the two of them.

In retrospect, how could she have _not_ felt anything? She was only human, after all, and humans fell in love without regard for circumstances or common sense.

She looked at Miroku. His words had soothed her, somewhat, making her understand more. He always seemed to have some gem of wisdom to offer when it was needed, a fact she was most grateful for.

"Thanks, Miroku-sama," Kagome said quietly. Miroku nodded once in understanding, before looking back towards the camp.

"It is late," he observed. "We have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow. We should retire soon."

Kagome glanced upwards again and was surprised to note how far the moon had traveled across the sky already. She had spent more time in the woods and healing InuYasha than she had thought.

"You're right," she said, shocked. She started walking towards the camp quickly. "We probably should go to bed now."

"Why, Kagome," Miroku smirked, winding an arm around her waist. "I had no idea you fostered such lascivious intentions towards me. Of course we should go to bed."

"Hentai!" she exclaimed, turning and punching him on the arm.

Miroku just smiled as they kept walking. After a moment, Kagome smiled as well.

He hadn't meant it seriously, that she could tell. The only one he truly went after anymore was Sango, and Kagome was pretty sure Sango didn't mind as much as she pretended to. He probably did it to take her mind off things.

Well, if such were his intentions, he had certainly succeeded.

"Baka," Kagome muttered, reaching the campfire area.

"Yes, but you know you love me that way," Miroku shot back, smirking. Kagome laughed, before entering the circle.

He may be a bit of a lech, but Miroku really was a great friend.

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So there's an idea of what's going on with InuYasha and Kagome. Remember, they've both matured a bit before this fic starts. Next chapter, more Sess/Kag interaction; I promise.

Please, on your way out, leave a review. Let me know what you think, tell me if you like it, yell at me to update, whatever suits your fancy. :P

Please, review!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: This took an extra week to write. On the subject of the delay, I shall simply say, very plainly, that _**school sucks**_. Thank you.

If Sesshomaru is OOC, deal with it. It's not by _that_ much, as I agonized over his character for quite a while, and he_ needs_ to be _somewhat_ OOC in order to successfully progress a romantic plotline.

Many thanks to all who reviewed! I read and cherish every one! Kudos to Mujitsu, beta reader extrodinaire, and Dave, who bugged and bothered me so incessantly that I simply _had_ to post this, just to shut him up.

**Elements**

**Chapter 4**

Early the next morning, Sesshomaru was surprised to see Kagome, sitting peacefully in a clearing, meditating, while the sun began to peek over the horizon.

He paused to look at the girl, who was clearly unaware of his presence. What was she doing out here so early? And why was she meditating?

His curiosity piqued, Sesshomaru moved over to sit down beside her. He tilted his head and looked at her closely, sniffing slightly.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Kagome obviously wasn't hurt or wounded, and she seemed to be perfectly fine. But if that was so, why was she out here, then?

Sesshomaru peered closer, curious.

Kagome sat facing the dawn, the warm light giving her skin a healthy glow. Rays of sunlight flickered on her hair, lending a slight auburn shine to her locks. Although her eyes were shut and her breathing deep, her limbs gracefully folded in the lotus position, a slight smile played around her lips, as if she was secretly amused by something.

Sesshomaru watched the motionless girl silently, taking in every detail. After he had done so, he came to a startling conclusion.

She was beautiful.

She really was beautiful, too, like a goddess or an angel had descended to earth just to enjoy the dawn. Her happiness at being alive seemed to hang around her like a cheerful aura, lending others some of her optimism. She seemed so full of life, so peaceful, so happy, so content, that it was amazing.

She was breathtaking.

"It's not polite to stare, you know."

Startled, Sesshomaru barely managed to keep himself from jerking backwards as the miko spoke. He glared at her angrily, though her eyes remained calmly closed.

"This Sesshomaru does not follow ningen protocol," he informed her. She smirked.

"No," she said in response. "I suppose not."

Shifting and smoothly unfolding her legs, Kagome opened her eyes, stretching her limbs briefly before tucking her legs to the side and turning to look at Sesshomaru.

Her cool blue gaze met his own amber eyes, and Sesshomaru was surprised to see the depth of the calm he found in them. Gone was the pain he had seen during their first encounter; in its place, a calm serenity took residence, nestling itself amidst her iris like it had lived there all its life.

Her eyes seemed peaceful, like the smooth surface of the sea, after a terrible storm had come to pass. Remembering the pain he had first seen there, he idly wondered whether the miko, like the sea, had weathered such a storm. It might explain her off behavior, if she had.

"The dawn's beautiful, isn't it?" Kagome commented, turning and smiling toward the east. Sesshomaru watched her for a moment more, before turning and looking to the east as well.

Kagome was right; the dawn _was_ beautiful. The sky was streaked with soft roses and honey tones, like an artist had carelessly brushed gentle streaks of color across his canvas. The sky seemed alight with pink and golden rays illuminating the scene, as a great ball of fire burning orange and yellow and white inched above the horizon, giving the scene a sense of ethereal beauty.

"I love the sunrise," Kagome said beside him. "It's so pretty. It gives me such a sense of hope that I can make it through the day, just hoping that everything will turn out okay." She turned to face him. "What do you think?"

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow.

"Like, what does the sunrise make you feel?" she clarified, elaborating. "Happy? Sad? Joyous? Hopeful?"

Sesshomaru looked at her oddly. It was just a sunrise; an unimportant, every-day event. He could see the aesthetic appeal of it, but what did it make him _feel?_

What an odd question! It wasn't like the sunrise was his _child _or something! Why would he feel _emotion_ for an _event_?

Kagome smiled softly. "You do not understand, do you?" she said gently. "That's okay. It will come." She turned to look back at the sunrise, leaving him to puzzle over her cryptic comments.

What did she mean, _understand_ it? Did she truly expect him to be able to _understand_ the sunrise? Was such a thing even _possible?_

Apparently so. _She_ seemed to, at any rate.

Kagome shifted again, and Sesshomaru felt his eyes drawn back to her. She yawned widely, before looking at him.

"So," she said conversationally. "What brings you here this morning?"

Sesshomaru blinked. It was clear that the girl was changing the subject, but why? Was it on his behalf? Or was she actually trying to talk with him? She seemed genuinely interested in his response.

Not seeing any harm in answering her, he shrugged.

"My ward likes fish," he told her, holding up a string of fresh salmon he had caught earlier. "The best time to catch fish is early, before dawn."

"Rin," Kagome said, smiling.

Sesshomaru nodded. He paused, considering, before asking her in turn, half expecting her not to respond, "What brings you here?"

"Peace of mind," she said simply. "I was a bit emotional yesterday, and I needed to calm down."

"Your powers," he said, understanding. Miko powers, which were run by emotions, often required much internal self-discipline, as being emotionally unstable could result in a catastrophic loss of control.

Kagome nodded.

"That, and the fact that I like sunrises," she added playfully.

The corner of Sesshomaru's mouth twitched upward, amused. The miko had a quick wit, which was _much_ more enjoyable when it was not directed at him, as it had been during their first encounter.

He paused. What had put her into an emotional state? She had seemed reasonably stable the previous night, in the woods. He looked at her sideways. His curiosity was strong, though it was not his place to ask.

Then again, it had hardly been _her_ business to ask what _he_ had been doing this morning. And one good turn _did_ deserve another, right?

He rolled his eyes at himself. Now he was arguing with his mind, trying to justify his own actions to himself. He was a taiyoukai, was he not? He could do whatever he wanted, without needing to give any justification of his actions to _anyone_! And if he wanted to interrogate the miko, so be it!

With new resolve, he turned to the girl, who still seemed enchanted with the sunrise.

"Why were you upset?" he asked.

"InuYasha," she said simply.

Sesshomaru bit back a scowl. His brother was the one thing that never failed to get on his nerves.

"What has that miserable half-breed done now?" he demanded, venom lacing his tone.

Kagome looked at him. "Nosy this morning, aren't we?" she commented.

Sesshomaru looked away. True, he _was_ being nosy, even though he wasn't quite sure why he was so interested in what had happened with her. But it did not matter! He was a taiyoukai, and it was his right to do and ask whatever he wanted to!

Right?

Kagome watched him for a moment before smiling at him. "It's no big deal, she smirked. "I just thought you would already have known, seeing as you were sneaking around our camp last night."

Sesshomaru shot her a surprised look. How had _she_ known he had been at her camp?

"You _were_ at are camp, weren't you?" she said triumphantly, smiling. "I wasn't sure, but your expression gives it all away."

Sesshomaru internally chastised himself for being so reckless as to show such a weakness as emotion. He had never before had such a lapse. What _was_ it about this girl that got to him so?

"If you were there, you must know what happened," Kagome remarked quietly, looking away.

It was true; Sesshomaru had a vague idea of what had happened, but he knew none of the details. He had followed the priestess back to her camp on an impulse, hiding himself in a tree and masking his presence so he could watch without being found.

Sesshomaru had watched as Kagome had gone into a hut to see InuYasha at her friend's request. The taijiya and the houshi had spoken quietly by the fire for a time, before the demon slayer had abruptly stopped, standing up and walking around the clearing, clearly disturbed, obviously sensing his presence.

She had sent the houshi to fetch InuYasha, who had come storming out a few moments later, as brash as ever. He had sniffed around the clearing before scowling deeply and arguing with the taijiya, clearly agitated. Sesshomaru had gotten a slight sadistic satisfaction out of the fact his presence was what was making his brother so anxious.

Kagome, however, was another story. She had come out of the hut later, after InuYasha had left, with the houshi following closely behind. She had been withdrawn, quiet, and introspective, appearing to be saddened by something. He had watched as she looked up at the stars for the longest time, seemingly contemplating something deep, before returning to her camp with the monk.

"I only know some of what occurred," Sesshomaru admitted. "Whatever transpired between you and my brother in the hut was beyond my view."

Kagome sighed. Sesshomaru watched as she lost herself in thought, immersing herself in the emotions of the previous night before beginning to speak.

"Sango wanted me to check up on InuYasha so he wouldn't wake Shippo," she said, remembering. "When I went into the hut, InuYasha was covered in blood and wounds from his fight with Kouga, so I began to heal him."

"Miko have healing powers?" he interrupted, intrigued. "I did not know that."

"I'm not sure," Kagome admitted. "Most miko don't, at any rate. Kaede doesn't, and no one ever mentioned anything about Kikyo or Midoriko possessing such healing abilities. It seems that I alone have such powers, however. It's something I developed in the times I journey away from my comrades and spend time on my own, like now. I'm not quite sure how it happened."

Finding this highly interesting, Sesshomaru listened closer. Apparently the immense raw power Jaken had spoken of was beginning to show itself, if it was manifesting itself in unknown miko abilities.

"Continue," he commanded. Kagome looked slightly surprised that he was so interested, before slipping back into her stale emotions and continuing her tale.

"When I was healing InuYasha, he- he grew aroused," she said quietly, her soft tone portraying just how inexperienced she was with this sort of thing.

Sesshomaru bit back a smirk. He was not altogether surprised. His brother had never possessed a modicum of his own self-control, and with an attractive woman leaning over him, her hands on his body, her face flushed and her shirt shredded, it was no surprise that the hanyou had reacted in such a base way.

Something must have slipped through his emotionless mask, because Kagome quickly exclaimed, "No! No, it was nothing like that! It was because of the _healing_!"

Sesshomaru quirked an eyebrow at her. She thought that the _healing_ was what had caused his brother to react in such a way?

She truly was naïve.

"Have you ever been healed by anyone other than yourself?" she asked him. At his shake of his head, Kagome gestured for him to come closer.

"Look, I'll show you what I mean," she said. "I'll heal you."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at her ironically, but moved closer nonetheless, his curiosity piqued, his desire to learn more of what strange abilities she possessed outweighing his caution.

"I have no wound for you to heal," he pointed out. "How can you heal what is not there?"

"You have an old battle scar," Kagome said, gesturing toward his missing arm. "I can heal that as a demonstration." She reached for the stub of his missing limb.

Sesshomaru recoiled from her touch, nearly flinching, though he was not sure why he was so opposed to the idea of her seeing his sole imperfection when he normally wore it with pride.

"There is no need for you to expend your power in such a way," he said quickly, careful to keep his tone cool. "It was my own foolishness that caused such a loss, and I shall pay the price."

Kagome shook her head, smiling slightly.

"You youkai and your misguided sense of duty and honor," she commented. "I'll never understand." She looked up at him, meeting his amber gaze once more.

"Well, if not your arm, then what? I cannot heal what is not there," she remarked, echoing his earlier words.

Shrugging the sleeve of his kimono back, Sesshomaru flexed his claws, waiting for the poison to flow through them. With careful precision, he bent his hand back, and one long nail sliced a thin slit along his forearm, blood and poison mixing its wake.

"There," he said, turning and offering Kagome his injured arm. "Here is a wound you might heal."

The miko looked slightly ill at having witnessed such a grotesque act of self-mutilation, but managed to pull herself together. Raising her hand and hesitating briefly, she placed it over top of the wound.

A jolt of electricity at the contact startled them both. Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed threateningly, while Kagome just looked confused. Shrugging and dismissing it a moment later, she summoned her power, before setting about healing him.

As her power flooded into his arm, Sesshomaru was surprised to note that his youki lay silent instead of rising up to fight off the intruder as he had expected. Pink sparks danced from her hand to his arm, and he watched, barely concealing his astonishment,as they began to sew up the wound.

Sesshomaru shivered involuntarily. It felt as if some of the healing sparks had escaped into his bloodstream and were now coursing through his veins, setting his nerves alight with sensitivity.

Kagome's fingers lightly brushed his skin as she healed his wound, and Sesshomaru nearly jumped at the sensation. His eyes instinctively shot up to meet Kagome's, but her intense blue gaze did nothing to help, instead increasing the feeling that was quickly settling around his abdomen.

It was no wonder that his brother had grown aroused.

The wound closed, forming a thin scar, before that, too, vanished, leaving only his flawless skin behind, smooth and unmarred. Kagome pulled back her hand, smiling at him triumphantly.

Raising his arm, Sesshomaru examined the area for a moment, before returning his arm to his side, concluding that it was, indeed, healed.

"I see what you mean about the healing being the cause," he said delicately, careful to keep his voice even.

Kagome's intense blue eyes met his, and she regarded him for a long moment, seemingly searching for something within his amber orbs, before looking away.

"Then you understand InuYasha's reaction," she said quietly.

"Hai," he responded.

They sat for a moment in silence, watching as the last bit of the sun crept above the horizon.

"Kagome," Sesshomaru said, a thought occurring to him. "Why is it-" He stopped as he turned to face her. A shocked look had taken residence on her face, as if she had just seen Ryuukossei reincarnate, though he had not sensed anything abnormal approaching.

"_What?_" he asked her curtly, the meaning of his words obvious.

"You- you said my _name_," she said, the stunned expression still on her face.

Sesshomaru barely managed to restrain himself from retorting '_so'?_

"Yes, this Sesshomaru said your name," he said dryly. "Is that not what you are normally referred to as? If you prefer 'wench' or 'baka' to 'Kagome', by all means, let me know..."

Kagome blushed a brilliant red.

"It's not that," she said, her face flaming. "It's just that you've only said it once before, when I told it to you. You- you've never actually _used_ it before." She looked away quickly, as if she had said something offensive.

Sesshomaru found himself strangely pleased with her odd behavior, although he was not quite sure why.

"Anyway," Kagome said, clearing her throat as her composure returned. "I have to go soon, or the others will notice I'm gone. What did you want?"

Sesshomaru accepted the change in conversation with grace. "I am not sure I understand why you were so upset with the hanyou," he told her.

"Oh, your brother?" she said.

"Half-brother," he corrected. She smirked.

"Yes, of _course_," she teased, her eyes sparkling. "Your _half-_brother. What about him?"

"You have shown through your explanation to me that you understand the nature of InuYasha's... _reaction _to your healing," he said delicately.

"Yes," Kagome frowned, standing up.

"If you understand it," he said, rising as well, "why were you so upset about it?"

"Oh!" Kagome exclaimed. "I wasn't mad that he was _aroused_! I was angry because of what he did after I finished healing him _because_ he was aroused!"

"What did he do?" Sesshomaru asked automatically, his curiosity prevailing over his common sense.

"He kissed me," Kagome said dryly, as if it were an unpleasant thing, "which he had _no _right to do, by the way, seeing as he's with the lovely _Kikyo_ now..."

"Wait," Sesshomaru said, not understanding. "He- _kissed_ you?"

"Yes," Kagome said, slinging her bow and quiver over her shoulder. She turned to look back at him apologetically. "I really am sorry, but I do need to go," she said, her regret at leaving seeping into her voice. Sesshomaru was surprised to note that he was sorry she was leaving as well.

"That is fine," he said aloud, moving back as she adjusted her weapons. "You have your obligations to attend to. I recognize that."

"Yeah," Kagome sighed, looking off into the trees, presumably in the direction of her camp. She looked at the forest reluctantly, before turning and smiling at Sesshomaru.

"Feel free to visit me whenever you want," she said, smiling. "I enjoy talking with you, Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru blinked, slightly startled. He realized that they had come a ways from their first meeting, where he had tried to kill her, but to think she actually _enjoyed _his company? _That_ was something new.

"That I shall, Kagome," he said neutrally.

He caught Kagome's smile andsaw her eyes sparkle as he said her name again, before walking off and vanishing into the woods, waving.

Sesshomaru looked off into the trees for a moment longer to see if she would return, before turning to his own thoughts.

So, the miko was going back to her camp. He wondered why she had seemed so reluctant to return to her friends. While speaking with a taiyoukai on equal terms was a rare thing, it wasn't as if it was _that _great, and he doubted she knew how rare such an occurrence was. Perhaps it was because she would be leaving his company and would not see him for a while. She _had_ said she enjoyed talking to him, hadn't she?

Then again, he supposed _anyone_ would have been reluctant to return to a search for Naraku, hoping to come across the manipulative hanyou by chance, as he left no trails to follow. He knew _he_ certainly was.

A gleam sparked in his eye, and an idea began to form. Sesshomaru pondered for a moment, before allowing himself a devious smirk.

Perhaps Kagome would not have to leave his company after all...

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FYI, the little wavy thing that looks like a snake just above her is my page break.

So, what did you think? If you read it, **please** review! Reviews feed the authoress, and encourage her to write more! And seeing as she already has a few ideas about what to write in the next chapter, they would only help get her next chapter out quicker!

Please, review! Your thoughts are greatly appreciated!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Many thanks to my friends who kept encouraging me to write, even when I felt overwhelmed and ill (which is why this chapter was so late). Also, props to Authoress Mujitsu, beta-reader extrodinaire, whom without my story would make a lot less sense. Also, I wish everyone **Oshogatsu no ureshii!** (Happy new year)

Thank you to everyone who reviewed! Your reviews are what keep me going when I get writer's block or come to a hard place to write through! Arigato! And please continue to review!

**Elements**

**Chapter 5**

"InuYasha! Slow down!"

Kagome hung on to the hanyou for dear life, clutching at his back, panicked as he raced along the path, blatantly ignoring the miko's cries.

"Please, InuYasha!" Sango called out from behind, straining to keep up with the irate hanyou from astride her fire-cat. "Kirara cannot keep this pace for so long!"

"I agree with Kagome-sama and Sango-san," Miroku said, gripping Kirara's fur tightly. "Please, InuYasha, slow down!"

"Quit whining, you sissies!" InuYasha snapped. "Do you want to get to Naraku or not!"

"I'd like to get to Naraku with some energy to spare," Sango scowled.

"Keh!" InuYasha scoffed.

Kagome sighed, surrendering to his stubbornness, and held him tighter, determined not to fall off.

Behind, on top of the fire-cat, Shippo complained.

"I wish Kagome would just sit InuYasha," he grumbled, folding his arms and pouting. "At least then we might slow down."

"Even Kagome knows not to bait InuYasha too much when he's in such a foul mood," Miroku remarked. "Besides, she'd end up crashing to the ground as well."

"Oh," Shippo said, crestfallen. He considered for a moment, before asking, "Why is InuYasha so angry, anyway?"

"InuYasha sensed a powerful demon at the camp last night. I fear the same demon is following us now," Sango said darkly.

Shippo blinked. "A youkai's following us? If it's bothering InuYasha so much, why doesn't he just kill it?"

"The more we sweat in peace, the less we bleed in war," Miroku remarked wisely. "Although we may feel uneasy, this demon has not shown us any ill will as of yet, and it would be brash to attack one that is not a definite enemy."

"Then why doesn't InuYasha just shut up and deal with it?" Shippo said crossly.

Sango smiled slightly. "In a way, he is," she remarked, watching the hanyou as he ran on. "Being angry and stubborn might be how InuYasha copes with things."

"If that is so, I think our friend is in dire need of a better coping method," Miroku said dryly. "Preferably one that makes him seem less like a toddler and more like a man."

Shippo laughed at that, along with Sango, who managed a slight giggle.

"Oi! Will you three shut up and stop horsing around? We're trying to catch Naraku here!" InuYasha snapped, turning his head to glare at them.

"Gomen-nasai, InuYasha," Sango apologized. "We were just talking."

"Well, keep it down, would ya?" InuYasha scowled, before turning back to face forward. "I don't need to hear your carrying on when I'm trying to follow Naraku's scent _while_ there's a blasted demon on our tail!"

"Hai, InuYasha. We will quiet down."

The three continued their conversation in hushed tones as they raced along. Atop the heated hanyou, Kagome sighed. Although it was customary for her to ride along, carried by InuYasha, sometimes she wished there was room for her to sit on Kirara along with the others. Miroku and Sango were much better conversationalists than InuYasha, and they certainly weren't so inclined to insult her or call her wench as her current traveling companion was.

Not to mention the constant aching of her body after bumping along on InuYasha's back for an entire day...

"Was it really necessary to yell at them like that?" Kagome murmured into one pointy ear.

"Necessary, no," InuYasha admitted, "but they were annoying me."

"Don't you think you might be overreacting a bit?" Kagome ventured. "They were just messing around."

"Need I remind you that an unknown demon is following us around for no apparent reason?" InuYasha said testily. "Those three should be on their guard, not messing around like a bunch of loonies."

Kagome sighed. It was just like InuYasha to get so paranoid over something so little. "Are you still worried about that mysterious youkai, InuYasha?" she asked.

"What do you mean, am I still worried about it!" InuYasha snapped, livid, his voice curt and cutting. "Of course I'm worried about it! There's a powerful demon following us around for no apparent reason! That tends to be a cause for concern! How could I _not_ be worried!"

"I just think you might be a bit paranoid," Kagome said. "They haven't hurt us yet-"

"So that automatically means they're not going to!" InuYasha pounced on her pause, interrupting. "They're still a legitimate threat!"

Kagome rolled her eyes. Sometimes, she wished for the days when the hanyou had been so headstrong and cocky and less tense and alert. The old InuYasha wouldn't have been so worried about unknown demons; he'd have simply killed them and been done with it.

Then again, if they still had the headstrong InuYasha, they would have probably been killed by now...

Kagome sighed, and InuYasha turned his head slightly to look at her, fixing her with a searching gaze.

"What's with you?" he asked softly. "You're usually the anxious one if there's a youkai around. Why's this one different?"

"I guess I'm not so sure all youkai are bad anymore," Kagome said, sighing again. "While most are, there's always exceptions to everything, isn't there? Just look at Shippo."

"Shippo's a ruddy kid," InuYasha scowled. "He's too little to be a threat. Full grown youkai are different; you know that." His eyes narrowed. "You don't know who the youkai following us is, do you?"

Kagome considered. "No," she said truthfully.

"But you have some idea, don't you?" he shot back, picking up on her moment's hesitation. "Maybe you've been off cavorting with some demon when you go on your long 'walks' and vanish."

"Oh, of course, InuYasha," Kagome said sarcastically. "Every time I go away, claiming to work on my miko powers, I've been flirting with strange demons, hoping to get some tips on how to slaughter villages and maim children." She rolled her eyes. _"Honestly_, InuYasha! Why does my going off on walks alone bother you so much? You know I can protect myself by now!"

"You're not supposed to do stuff like that!" InuYasha scowled. "How do I know you're not off frolicking with some handsome young demon?"

Kagome's eyes darkened slightly with anger. Jealously or not, her private life was none of InuYasha's business, and he had no right to tell her what she could and could not do! "And if I have?" she retorted, holding her head high.

**"_WHAT?"_**

InuYasha stumbled violently, tripping over a boulder and nearly toppling off a cliff, causing Kagome to scream and clutch at his shoulders desperately, nearly falling off, as Sango swerved sharply to avoid hitting them, yelling, "Watch it, InuYasha!"

Blatantly ignoring them both, InuYasha landed nearby and roughly deposited Kagome on the forest floor, sending her sprawling across the ground.

"_WHAT!" _InuYasha yelled, completely infuriated. "_WHAT!" _Kirara landed nearby, Miroku and Sango quickly jumping off, the furious hanyou oblivious to their presence.

"What do you mean, _'And if I have'_?" InuYasha yelled.

"Kami, InuYasha!" Kagome gasped out, rubbing her sore side. "Can't you take a joke?"

"That was a joke!" he repeated, his eyes flashing.

"Obviously!" Kagome snapped at him, getting to her feet and brushing the dirt off of her skirt. "Honestly! If I had been of fraternizing with some demon, I certainly wouldn't tell you about it that way!"

"You _bitch!_" InuYasha yelled furiously. "That's a mean and nasty joke! And it's not like you'd actually _do_ such a thing! No demon would have you, anyway!"

"Now, now," Sango said hurriedly, looking disconcerted by all the yelling. "Let's all calm down and talk things out rationally..."

Neither party paid the taijiya any heed.

"Is that so?" Kagome said dangerously, her eyes glittering malevolently. "And what, pray tell, would you do if I _hadn't_ been joking?"

"Then I'd go slaughter that bastard Koga!" InuYasha spat back.

"What the hell's _Koga_ got to do with _anything?!_" Kagome yelled. "You're not making any sense!"

"He's the charming demon you've been off cavorting with, isn't he?" InuYasha shot back sarcastically.

"For the last time, I have _not_ been off cavorting with _anyone!"_ Kagome snapped, stomping her foot. A thin wisp of pink smoke trailed up from the point of impact, unnoticed by all. "And if I had been, it wouldn't be with Koga!"

"Then who _would_ it be with?" InuYasha snarled sarcastically. "That Jinenji idiot? Ooo, or maybe with your imaginary boyfriend?"

"As a matter of fact, no!" Kagome snapped. "I was thinking of your brother, Sesshomaru, you ignorant twit!"

A heavy silence fell upon the clearing for a long moment, before InuYasha let out a hearty cackle.

"_Sesshomaru!"_ he asked incredulously. "Sesshomaru? You've _got_ to be kidding!"

"And why is that?" Kagome said hotly, her hands on her hips.

"Sesshomaru _hates_ humans!" InuYasha laughed. "The only exception he's ever made has been that little girl, and even that's a stretch for him! There's no _way_ he would ever associate with you!"

Kagome fumed, ready to retort, only to have Miroku hurriedly interject, "Why do you bring up Sesshomaru, Kagome?"

Kagome sighed, letting a slight smile escape. You could always trust Miroku to effectively diffuse a tense situation.

"I think he's the one who's following us," Kagome admitted, hesitant. Miroku raised an eyebrow, and InuYasha scowled.

"Sesshomaru? Following us? That baka must be even more of a chicken then I thought!" InuYasha declared, smirking. "Well, is he's following us, I'll give him a taste of my sword when he finally gets the balls to attack!"

"I don't think he's going to attack, InuYasha," Kagome said, exasperated. "If he wanted to fight, he would have done so by now."

"Keh!" InuYasha scoffed. "Baka! He must be after the Tessaiga, like he always is!"

"Sesshomaru hasn't tried to get the Tessaiga in _ages_!" Kagome retorted. "He has his super evil sword Tokijin to kill people with now, remember?"

"If not for the Tessaiga, then why's he following us?" InuYasha shot back. "Oh, for _you, _I suppose?"

"Has it ever occurred to you that Sesshomaru might just be trying to find Naraku as well!" Kagome snapped, her patience wearing thin. "Following us would certainly be the easiest way to do that, seeing as I'm the only one who can sense the shards!"

"Why would Sesshomaru care about Naraku?" InuYasha snorted dismissively. "All _he_ cares about is powerful swords and making sure his pretty-boy face doesn't get marred!"

"Oh!" Kagome raged, nearly incoherent with fury. "I can't believe you!"

"Why not? Because I'm right?" he retorted angrily.

"No!" Kagome yelled, livid. "You know why!"

"No! Why?!" InuYasha yelled back.

"Because you're too much of an arrogant prick to even admit when I'm right!" Kagome said viciously.

"Well, you know what?" InuYasha yelled.

"No! What!" Kagome yelled back.

"I _would _admit when you're right, if you were ever right!" he yelled triumphantly. "Which you're not! Ever!"

Kagome's eyes lit up with raw fury, and her hair started to float around her, as if it was charged with static electricity. A pebble rattled beneath her foot, glowing with a bright pink energy, before freeing itself and hurtling away from her, whizzing about two feet from InuYasha's side, who dodged reflexively.

"Oh, so now you can't take the fact that I'm right, so you start throwing rocks!" InuYasha snarled, glaring at her. "Is that how it is!"

"Relax, InuYasha," Sango said, trying to calm him down. "It was probably only a stone that a youkai touched reacting to Kagome-chan's purification power."

"Yeah, InuYasha," Shippo piped up. "I remember I stepped on a rock earlier!"

"Keh! Shut up!" InuYasha scoffed, sneering as he bent down and picked up a large rock. He stood, tossing the rock idly in his hand as he glared at Kagome, who was struggling to keep her purification powers under control.

"If Kagome's going to throw rocks at me," he said, cocking his head, "Then I'm going to throw rocks at Kagome!" he declared savagely, flicking his wrist and sending the rock flying at Kagome.

Kagome's arm moved, there was a bright flash, and the next thing the others saw was Kagome standing in the clearing, surrounded by an ethereal pink light, her eyes flashing with anger, her hair flying around behind her wildly, one hand clasping the rock InuYasha had hurled at her, the stone glowing a bright magenta.

Kagome turned to face InuYasha, who recoiled, a flicker of fear in his eyes.

**"Don't,"** Kagome said, advancing on him menacingly.

**"Ever."** She idly tossed the rock up and down in her hand.

**"Throw."** The rock was now completely bathed in pink energy, crackling with the power.

**"Rocks."** InuYasha's eyes widened as he realized with astonishment that it was the _rock_ that was emitting such power.

**"At."** Realizing he was doomed, InuYasha turned and ran.

**"Me!"**

Rearing back, Kagome hurled the rock at the hanyou with all her might, sending it whistling through the air, giving off waves of purification power. Pink lit up the valley and the forest, the contrast sharp from that of the darkness of night.

The stone reached the fleeing hanyou, who couldn't help but turn to look at the rock-missile as it approached. Painful sweat pouring down his brow from the proximity of the purification, InuYasha thought, with stark terror, that this would truly be the end of his time on earth as a hanyou.

**"SIT!"**

The loud scream echoed through the valley, sending InuYasha crashing into the dirt, the stone whizzing over his head harmlessly off into the distance. The others ran to see if he was alright.

"InuYasha? InuYasha!" Shippo yelled, crouching down by the crater in the ground. "Speak to me, InuYasha!" Sango and Miroku quickly knelt down and pulled InuYasha out of the crater, laying him down on the grass face up.

"Whoa..." Shippo said, looking on in awe. "What happened?"

While adorned with no wounds or outward signs that the rock had hit him, InuYasha's hair had turned a pitch black, and his fangs had shrank back into his mouth, making him look much like the human version of himself that appeared every night of the new moon, except for his ears and claws. His eyes remained closed, so they could not tell what his eye color was now.

"He is unconscious."

Miroku and Sango quickly looked up at Kagome, who was standing silently above them, her clothes still billowing slightly in an invisible wind, emanating with restrained power.

"I knocked him out with the force I sat him with," Kagome said, her tone monotonous and carefully controlled. "The hair and teeth are side effects of how close the stone got to him. They will go away in a day or so." Kagome turned and began walking off.

"Kagome-chan! Wait!" Sango called after her friend, rushing to her side. Kagome paused. "Are you okay?"

Kagome smiled slightly, though it seemed strained, as if she were ill.

"Hai, Sango-chan," she said carefully. "I am okay."

"Then where are you going?" Sango asked.

Kagome waved a hand carelessly at the valley. "Somewhere away from here," she said. "You forget, Sango, that my miko powers accumulate inside me. I have to release all this pent-up power somewhere safely, as I do not yet have the ability to control so much for a long amount of time. I will be back later, however, or perhaps in the morning."

Sango bit her lip worriedly. "Will you be okay?" she asked, concerned about her friend despite her reassurances.

Kagome managed a laugh. "Hai, Sango-chan," she responded.

"Are you sure?" Sango said doubtfully.

Kagome smirked and threw her arms out wide, cutting her power loose for a brief moment. Great waves of pink power billowed from her, making her glow with energy, her hair flapping in the wind it created. Sango crouched down so as not to swept away by the winds, squinting up at her friend.

"Do you really think any youkai would dare approach me like this, Sango?" Kagome asked, her voice loud over the harsh winds swirling around her. "And if they do, rest assured, Sango, that I will dispose of them perfectly fine."

Sango smirked, reassured by the momentary display, and Kagome lowered her arms, ending her brief display of her power. Sango smiled and moved back to rejoin Miroku and InuYasha. "I shall set up camp and watch after InuYasha while you are gone," she said. "Take care."

"You too," Kagome responded, smiling slightly, walking off, the pink glow fading from sight as she disappeared into the darkness.

Smiling, Sango turned back to face the group, only to see Miroku and Shippo gaping after Kagome, their jaws wide open.

"...wow," Shippo said, dumbfounded.

"Amazing," Miroku agreed, awed.

Sango smirked. Unlike the others, she had been privy to Kagome's displays of power before, once when Kagome needed help many nights ago. Kagome had looked the same, except more subdued, but now, Sango sensed that Kagome had not even released her full power and had still managed to create such a storm.

Still, she knew the feeling of being awed by the miko.

"Amazing..." Shippo said, flabbergasted.

"Wow," Miroku agreed, still gaping after her.

Sango smirked as she began to set up camp. The other two obviously weren't going to be much help for a while.

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"Sesshomaru! Rin's feet are tired!"

"Lord Sesshomaru! When will we rest? It has already grown dark!"

Sesshomaru turned his head to send a cutting glare at the two following him, who were immediately silenced.

"We'll stop when I say we'll stop, and no sooner," Sesshomaru said curtly, continuing to walk forward. "And I will not hear another word from you on the matter. Understood?"

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama," the two chorused.

Turning to face front again, Sesshomaru could hear Jaken griping to Rin, "I told you not to bother Sesshomaru-sama! Now you've made him mad!"

Sesshomaru sighed. Had these two always been so obnoxious, or were his nerves just more worn than usual?

Having decided to follow Kagome and her group to Naraku, all Sesshomaru had needed to do was focus on his half-brother's scent, which was putrid enough to be smelled miles from his actual location.

Trust the hanyou to reek of sweat, blood, and anger. Had the fool never learned to bathe?

It had been quite aggravating, really. Sesshomaru would have much preferred to follow the scent of the miko, or even the taijiya or houshi, but InuYasha's scent had drowned all the others out.

_Baka_, Sesshomaru thought condescendingly.

He had been rather interested in what the miko's scent would be, too. Sesshomaru had long since realized that Kagome had taken to concealing her presence and scent whenever she was away from her friends, presumably to hide from youkai or to prevent InuYasha from finding her. While it was unusual, it was not unheard of for a miko to have such power.

Sesshomaru had thought he would finally discover her scent when he crept into her camp the previous night, only to be disappointed when the stench of blood overwhelmed all others. And now, her scent was drowned out by the filthy one of his brother.

Idiot hanyou. If Sesshomaru ever got his talons around that fool, he would slowly skin him, slice by slice, and clog up the hanyou's oversensitive nose with his own reeking flesh...

Out of nowhere, a glowing pink projectile came hurtling at them from the forest up ahead, whistling with power. Instinctively, Sesshomaru tackled his party to the ground, protecting them with his body. With a burst of power from Tokijin and his demon speed, Sesshomaru attempted to disarm the sudden missile as it whizzed by overhead, only to have it spark off pink flames and land a few meters behind them.

Satisfied that the threat had passed, Sesshomaru slowly rose, uncovering the startled Jaken and Rin, who were both gazing up at him grateful.

"Sesshomaru-sama saved our lives," Rin said, admiring and enchanted. "Arigato..."

"Sesshomaru-sama is trained in the ways of noble youkai warriors," Jaken admonished her slightly, staring at his lord, amazed. "Of course he could save us."

Sesshomaru watched as they briefly shook themselves and returned to their normal dispositions as he approached the fallen missile.

"Sesshomaru-sama, what was that?" Jaken squawked, running after him, with Rin close behind.

Sesshomaru did not respond, instead stopping and looking at the fallen weapon.

It was a rock.

He, the mighty taiyoukai lord, had been threatened by a _rock?_

An eerie glowing pink rock, perhaps, but a rock nonetheless.

He had never been so insulted in all of his life.

"Hmm..." Jaken murmured to himself, slowly creeping up on the rock, before shrinking back. "My lord, this rock appears to be emanating waves of power from it. I cannot approach it any further."

Raising an eyebrow, Sesshomaru stepped forward, only to feel the painful prickling of purification begin nipping at his skin. He stepped back.

"Indeed, Jaken," Sesshomaru said, looking down at the rock.

"How are we to discover who has thrown the rock if we are not even able to pick it up?" Jaken said, aghast. "Surely this is no ordinary stone!"

"Jaken-sama is silly!" Rin said, dancing forward. "Look! Rin will pick up the rock!" Before either one of them could move to stop her, the girl had dashed forward and done just that.

"This is a pretty rock!" Rin exclaimed happily, examining it. "It glows a pretty pink!"

Sesshomaru and Jaken kept their distance as Rin exclaimed over how great the rock was.

"How is it that the girl can touch the rock while we cannot approach it, m'lord?" Jaken asked. "I do not understand."

Sesshomaru watched as Rin ran about, tossing the rock into the air and catching it again, laughing gaily. "That is a stone cast by a miko, Jaken," Sesshomaru said quietly. "It radiates purification. While we, as youkai, cannot approach it, Rin is ningen, and can touch it without fear."

Jaken nodded, his oddly shaped head bobbing up and down. "Hai, Sesshomaru-sama," he said. "Your genius knows no bounds."

A bright flare of the same power pulsed behind them, in the same direction the rock had been hurled from, and Sesshomaru and Jaken quickly turned to look.

The forest up ahead was glowing slightly pink, as if an explosion had occurred.

"The sky over there is pretty," Rin said happily. "It matches Rin's rock!"

"InuYasha's miko is upset," Sesshomaru murmured to himself, distracted. Jaken looked up at him oddly. "That explains the rock. She must have thrown it at him."

Sesshomaru turned again to face Rin.

"Rin," he said, his tone commanding. "You will stay here with your new rock. It will keep you safe while Jaken and I go off to investigate the source of the pink light. You may play with your new toy if you wish, but you must keep that stone with you at all times."

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama," Rin said obediently, before sitting down and proceeding to roll the rock around.

"Come, Jaken," Sesshomaru commanded. "We depart."

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama," Jaken said, trotting after the departing taiyoukai lord.

Sesshomaru faced ahead at the valley to the side of the forest as he left Rin behind, sensing the purification power ahead, even from a distance. He could feel the same energy from the rock building there, that of a powerful miko. He felt that it was swelling as it moved down lower into the valley, growing as it moved along.

Sesshomaru looked at the valley wonderingly, Jaken trotting alongside.

What could the miko be doing down there?

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Yay! Another chapter completed! And I already have a definite outline for the next chapter, a rarity indeed. :P

Please, on your way out, review! I read and cherish every one! Let me know what you think!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Ooh, look! It's a **new** chapter of Elements! Aren't you all just overjoyed with me?

Many thanks to you all for your faithful reviews! I appreciate and cherish every one! Please, continue to review!

**Elements**

**Chapter 6**

Harsh winds whirling around her, Kagome descended into the valley, trying not to cry as the ruthless gales assaulted her. Grass and leaves blew about in great numbers, and even a few sapling shrubs were uprooted as she passed by. Faltering at the sight of a branch blowing by, the young miko bit her lip worriedly but continued her steady walk downhill to the valley, where she would hopefully be ignored.

It wasn't her fault, really. She had only been joking. And if InuYasha hadn't lost his temper, she would have never lost her cool...

Kagome paused, frowning, and the winds picked up a bit before she continued on her way. That bit _was_ her fault. She had always been a bit on the impulsive side, and her powers certainly seemed to follow suit.

Kagome scowled and kicked at a rock moodily, sending it flying off into the distance, glowing a vivid pink. What was wrong with her? She had trained herself in all conventional forms of miko energy usage, including a few of her own, like healing, she could summon her energy at will, and she understood the elements! She had fully earned the title of a miko, except for one flaw: she couldn't totally control her powers.

When she had embarked upon her quest to become a true miko and begun training herself, she hadn't expected any of this. All she knew was that she was frustrated with being so helpless all the time and depending on the others to save her, and she was fed up with playing the constant damsel in distress. Kagome had never liked depending on others for anything, and it had been high time she did something for herself, for once.

So she had taken to going on long walks away from the camp in the evenings and meditating, feeling for her energy. Once she had tapped into it, she experimented with it, trying to understand it and how it worked. After a while, she had gotten good enough to be able to mask her scent, so InuYasha couldn't keep finding her and yelling at her when she was trying to train herself. Through trial and error, she had learned to summon her energy and channel into an object, such as an arrow, and use it in other ways. She had also taught herself how to purify a youkai, heal a wound, control the elements, and walk about without being noticed. By the time she had deigned herself a fully-trained miko, she was stronger than Kikyo or Midoriko had ever been.

But once Kagome had tapped into her energy, it never seemed to want to turn off. She was powerful, and all that power didn't always want to be bound up all the time. Kagome had tried meditating and concentrating to keep it under control, but whenever she felt strong emotions or lost her cool, she could feel her power start to leak, and she hurried off to meditate and regain her control.

Sometimes, however, meditation didn't always work, and that was when Kagome had to go off to a secluded place by herself, like she was doing now, to set things right again.

Oh, what she wouldn't give to learn some sort of self-control! She'd be able to laugh and play again, run and jump and yell, without worrying about accidentally purifying her friends. Nothing she tried ever seemed to work, and it wasn't as if her friends could help her with this.

Having reached her destination at the lowest point of the valley, Kagome paused and sighed, her energy sparking about her in crackling pink bolts and biting winds. With so much of her precarious control lost, there was one to safely guarantee her energy would stop acting out on its own, at least for a bit, and that was to use it up.

Closing her eyes, her face a mask of concentration, Kagome summoned up every emotion she had been feeling over the past few days. The feelings bubbled up inside of her, along with her energy, and Kagome felt it all straining to break through. The winds around her sped up hazardously, and pink bolts of energy flashes about.

Flashes of memories and events darted through her mind like an erratic movie, the relating emotions accompanying the track. The happiness of triumph, the sting of defeat, the betrayal from InuYasha, the exasperation with Koga, the confusion with Sesshomaru, the annoyance, the aggravation, the anger, the rage, the blind fury... all her feelings and power grew, swelling dangerously. Tears began streaming from her eyes as Kagome strained to hold it all in, trying to gather it all.

As an image of InuYasha's face flitted in front of her mind's eye, Kagome lost it, and she felt her control shattering around her. With the winds around her whirling around her nearing the speed of a tornado and her energy straining to break free with all its might, Kagome threw her head back and screamed.

A sonic boom rolled over the hills, echoing in the mountains, moving the forest, shaking the very ground two youkai walked on. The taller youkai continued his powerful stride, ignoring the rocking ground beneath him, while the smaller cried out in dismay.

Jaken shrieked in panic at the rolling land beneath him, jumping about from foot to foot, crying out every time his foot touched the ground. Determinedly ignoring his retainer, Sesshomaru strode on, completely unaffected.

"Sesshomaru! My lord! Sesshomaru!"

Restraining himself from rolling his eyes in exasperation, Sesshomaru turned to look at the kappa, knowing from experience the water demon wouldn't shut up unless he was acknowledged first.

"What now, Jaken?" he asked. "Surely you are not scared by a mere earthquake?"

"Forgive me for my interruption, my lord, but this earthquake is burning your lowly servant!" Jaken squealed, doing his best to maintain some sense of decorum as he hopped about from foot to foot in pain. "The ground burns my feet, Sesshomaru-sama! Please, help your lowly servant!"

Raising an elegant eyebrow, Sesshomaru picked Jaken up by the neck, skeptical, and examined his servant, ignoring his gasping for air. It was true; the bottom of Jaken's feet were burned and blistering badly, and the smell of cooked flesh hung in the air.

"It appears you are right, Jaken," Sesshomaru said noncommittally, dropping Jaken back to the ground. "It seems that this sudden earthquake, does, indeed, burn."

"Then... shouldn't we turn back _away_ from this earthquake and return to safer ground?" Jaken ventured timidly, looking at a group of small raccoon youkai who were fleeing from the direction of the valley. Sesshomaru turned and shot him a curt glare.

"No."

"But- but why, m'lord?" Jaken sputtered. "Surely this pain-"

"If you possessed a shred of sense, Jaken, you would notice that you are the only one of us in any pain," Sesshomaru said curtly, continuing on his way, his silvery hair billowing ominously in the growing winds.

Jaken was dismayed to realize that this was true.

"But- but how can this be?" Jaken squawked, flapping his arms about in confusion.

"This Sesshomaru believes the 'earthquake', as you so delicately put it, is a result of the miko sending shockwaves of purification energy through the ground," Sesshomaru told him, a pink aura shining brightly ahead of them. "As we are youkai, thus, the energy burns. I have told you to wear shoes before, Jaken."

Jaken scowled darkly, but managed to mutter a resentful, "Hai, Sesshomaru-sama."

Sesshomaru's sharp ears caught Jaken's disrespectful tone, but he paid it no heed. It would serve the kappa right for not listening to him before. And besides, the aftershocks of the earthquake were fading quickly, and his pain would end soon enough. Paying no further attention to the demon, the taiyoukai quickened his pace as he climbed the hill to the valley, his retainer trailing behind.

It was a rather odd valley, actually. The valley seemed more like someone had taken a hill and pushed half of it inside out than anything else. After all, how many valleys required you to _climb_ to get to them?

Sesshomaru didn't really know why they were going to a valley, either. He didn't see why InuYasha's miko had chosen to come to such a place, isolated from the rest of the world. It was obvious that she wanted to be alone, but the taiyoukai's insatiable curiosity concerning the girl demanded that he know why.

As he climbed the mountain, Sesshomaru became distinctly aware of a growing sense of power. It was huge, gigantic, and pulsed beneath his feet. The winds around him also picked up, blowing greatly, seeming to escape from the great chasm ahead. It seemed like it was storming in the valley, but if that were the case, surely the miko would have had enough sense to run back to her friends?

Finally reaching the top, Sesshomaru paused while Jaken caught his breath, before the two carefully peered over the edge of the valley into the pink glow. Sesshomaru's eyes widened in wonderment while Jaken marveled beside him. It was unbelievable.

Standing at the bottom of the valley was Kagome.

Except she didn't look like Kagome at all.

Hair blown back, flying about wildly in the fierce windstorm, her eyes glowing an ethereal pink, Kagome stood still, her hands at her sides, her mouth open in a silent scream. Energy radiated off of her in great billowing waves as harsh gales of wind whirled around her, like some horrible cyclone with her at the epicenter. Tears streamed down her face as she stood there, leaving wet tracks along her cheeks before being blown off into the wind.

She looked like a fallen goddess, lost in her own pain.

While the fallen miko was certainly a sight to behold, the power swirling around her was nothing short of extraordinary. While Sesshomaru had been exposed to other miko before, none of them had ever possessed power such as _this_. Whereas most spiritual energy was polished, refined, and controlled, Kagome's was raw and rough, as if it came directly from the earth itself.

Sesshomaru was truly awed.

As he watched the swirling storm, Sesshomaru became aware of exactly why Kagome had come to such a place. Though her power was great, the valley was deep, with sharp, sloping sides, and her power could not fully overcome this geographic force, so it remained contained in the pit, intensifying in itself instead spilling over the edges. It was admirable that the girl had obviously gone to such lengths to protect everyone else. Sesshomaru could only imagine the devastation that would have occurred had she not taken such protective measures.

Suddenly, the winds grew fiercely in their intensity, and Sesshomaru became distinctly aware that something was wrong. Though he had no idea why Kagome had decided to unleash such a storm of her power, her pain was becoming more and more evident in the air, making the storm all the much worse. While the kappa beside him struggling to hang on to the ground, the taiyoukai carefully climbed over the edge of the valley and began a slow descent down to the miko.

"Lord Sesshomaru! Where are you going?"

"I'm going to find out what's wrong!" Sesshomaru yelled back, his voice nearly lost in the winds. "Go and get Rin, and then, if I have calmed the storm, come down to get me in the valley!"

"But my lord-"

"Go!" Cutting off all further objections, Sesshomaru carefully made his way down the valley, straining to keep his balance against the growing winds. His head ached with the harsh whistling of the winds piercing through his sensitive ears, while tiny bolts of purification nipped at his skin, and Sesshomaru felt himself cringe in agony.

Glancing up at the edge, Sesshomaru saw that Jaken had indeed gone to obey his orders, before he turned back against the wind and approached the miko.

Kagome still stood there, lost in herself, her eyes glowing as she stood there, silently screaming her pain, reflected in the wind. But whereas before her pain had only seemed emotional, it now seemed physical as well, but that she was trying to endure it.

She was trying to hold on to her powers, he realized suddenly. She must have gotten overloaded with her power come here to let loose, but she didn't seem fully able to let go of her control. Closing his eyes, ignoring the biting pain of her energy against his skin, Sesshomaru closed his eyes and mentally extended his youki to find out what the problem was.

Her powers whirled around her, spinning and spinning around, a thin string of energy connecting them to Kagome, drawing more energy out of her and up through the earth. Sesshomaru could feel Kagome trying to break the connection, but the string held fast, pulling more and more raw energy from the earth as her own was expended. He hadn't known a person could control the elements in such a way, but then again, he hadn't ever known anyone like Kagome.

Opening his eyes again, Sesshomaru squinted through the winds at the painful expression on Kagome's face. She needed help, a distraction, to help her let go. He wanted to help her, but how could he? He was a youkai, and she was a miko. Though they were friends of a sort, her energy would hurt him greatly if he tried to help her, whether or not she wanted it to.

Sesshomaru felt something in his mind settle into place. Maybe that was it...

Mentally resolving to do something very stupid that would likely be very painful as well, Sesshomaru struggled to walk forward, straining against the wind, until Kagome finally came within his grasp. With all his strength, cringing at what he was about to do, he grabbed her upper arm, tugging with all his might.

Sesshomaru managed to see Kagome's eyes snap back to normal, and she looked at him and his hand holding her with horrified recognition, before he felt his soul being ripped out of him.

An unearthly howl of pain tore itself from his throat, and he felt Kagome scream beside him as well with pain, as she desperately tried to pull back her energy, frantically trying not to hurt him. He cried out as he felt his soul start to shift, grinding painfully within him, trying to realign itself to become pure, and Kagome cried out with him.

The pain and the energy suddenly changed, and all of the sudden Sesshomaru felt liquid fire burn through him, scorching his skin and his veins. The pain gathered around his left shoulder and intensified, growing into something, agony building and swelling, and with another loud shockwave of energy forced powerfully into the ground, booming loudly around them, Sesshomaru was left screaming as he fell into blackness while the earth shook beneath him, darkness overcoming him as he collapsed and the agony faded out.

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Sesshomaru awoke to an unusual set of circumstances.

His eyes slowly opening, he saw the sun shining brightly overhead, indicating that it was past dawn. The birds swooped about, fully awake, chirping in their happiness. Dismayed, Sesshomaru realized that he must have overslept past his usual waking time of dawn and immediately moved to get up.

Hearing a small groan come from within his arms, Sesshomaru quickly froze, fast becoming aware that he was holding someone to his chest, firmly encased in his arms, though he had no idea who the said person was. The figure shifted sleepily, black hair tickling his nose, smelling slightly of juniper and jasmine, before moving back and laying its head against his chest once again, seemingly content to be held in his arms.

Wait – _arms?_

His sleepiness rapidly dissipating, Sesshomaru moved slightly, and became aware that he, once again, had two arms, something he had not possessed for over two years. Struggling to figure out what had happened, Sesshomaru wracked his mind, searching for memories.

_Pink rock hurling out of nowhere... earthquake... climbing to the valley... going inside... lashes of power... winds whirling around... Kagome standing in the middle of the valley, crying... lost in pain... must help her... her shocked expression as he grabbed her... the pain of his soul ripping... the change in power as it focused on his missing limb... the succumbing blackness as it overwhelmed him..._

Shaking his head, Sesshomaru cleared his thoughts. At least his recollection of last night answered his questions: it must be Kagome who he was holding in his arms.

Inhaling deeply, Sesshomaru felt the tell-tale twinge of her miko power flutter slightly within her as he smelled her, intrigued by her scent. He had never gotten the opportunity before, as she always masked her scent when she left her friends, and he found it was oddly pleasing. She smelled of juniper and jasmine, with a slight tinge of rain. She smelled fresh and clean, much nicer than most humans smelled, and her hair smelled of apples.

It was mildly surprising to realize that he would be perfectly content to lay there with her as she slept, simply smelling her, long into the day.

She shifted again in his arms, and Sesshomaru felt himself instinctively pull her tighter against his chest, her body soft against his own. His armor seemed to have vanished. Perhaps, being youkai armor, it had been obliterated by her purification energy channeling through him.

Examining himself subtly, Sesshomaru was relieved to find that he seemed to sport no signs of abuse from the purification energy. His claws were still firmly in place, his fangs were as long as ever, and his hair remained a pure silvery-white. The only thing that was any different about him was his new arm.

Moving it from Kagome, Sesshomaru held it up in the air, examining it as his kimono fell back from it. It was perfectly formed, tendons and bones aligning perfectly, his hands ending in elegant talons, and two magenta stripes streaking from his wrist up his arm. Flexing his claw slightly, he felt poison flow into it, and he smiled slightly, welcoming the feeling.

When he had grabbed the miko in the midst of her pain, he hadn't really known what would happen. There had been a strong chance that he would be purified, naturally, but there had also been a chance that Kagome would realize who he was and re-channel her energy to something less harmful before cutting it off. Though the chance of her doing so was small, he had taken the chance heedlessly, not really knowing why as he did so. He wasn't quite sure when Kagome had suddenly meant something to him, but it was certain that she did now.

It seemed the miko had fully repaid him for his senseless risk. She had shifted her purification energy and healed his missing arm with it. He would be forever in her debt.

The girl shifted again in his arms, this time pulling back slightly and stretching, yawning widely. Her eyes flickered open sleepily, a deep blue, as she looked at the taiyoukai lord.

"Hello," she murmured, nuzzling her head back into his shoulder. "It's nice out, isn't it?"

"Indeed," he said, amused. The girl obviously didn't realize just who was holding her.

Kagome stiffened slightly, before relaxing again. "Sesshomaru?" she asked, pulling back to look at him more fully.

"None other," he responded mildly. Her eyes drifted from his eyes all around his face, soaking the sight in, as if to make sure.

"You're holding me," she said simply.

"I believe it was you who once told me not to state the obvious," he said dryly, and she laughed. She pulled back from him and moved over on the grass, and Sesshomaru was surprised to feel a sense of loss as she did so.

She propped her head up on her hand and smiled at him. "Thanks," she said. "I was really a mess last night, wasn't I?"

Mimicking her example, Sesshomaru propped his own head up on his new hand and looked back at her. "What happened?" he asked, curious.

"InuYasha and I had a row, and I completely lost my temper," Kagome admitted, looking down. "I'm still new at the whole miko thing, so my control slipped with my emotions. I went to the valley to let it run free until it was all used up." She looked up at him uncertainly. "That's what you came and saw, I guess. My power running free, I mean."

Sesshomaru felt a rush of fury ignite within him as he recalled the pained expression on her face as her energy whirled around her.

"How could you do something so foolish?" he asked, his tone cold and icy, making it that much more intense. Her eyes widened as he continued on. "Do you have any idea what might have happened?"

"You could have _died_, you could have been lost, you could've been seriously hurt!" he said, his tone losing its icy quality, becoming heated. "Why did you do such a thing? Tell me!"

Kagome looked at him uncertainly, fear flickering in her eyes at his enraged tone.

"I've done it before," she said. "I don't know any other way to handle it when my energy slips. I can't fully control it."

"Control or not, your energy was used up and you were channeling raw energy from the earth through you by the time I got there!" Sesshomaru countered. "You looked like you were about to _die_!"

"It's unlike you to care so much about someone," she said, confused by his response. "I'm just a lowly ningen, remember?"

"You are _not_ just a lowly ningen!" Sesshomaru said angrily, his tone final. "You stopped being just another human the moment you overpowered me in that field! No human has ever had the ability to beat me before, let alone control such power! And it is not out of the question for me to care about what happens to such a mighty person!"

"You just don't get it, do you?" he snapped, looking away. "I had to do something. Your expression was one of absolute agony as you channeled the earth! You could not have possibly have done _that_ before."

Kagome looked at him, her eyes a silent blue in response to his own fiery amber.

"Yeah, I have," she said quietly. "After a while, the pain becomes so overwhelming I pass out, and the power all lets go. I don't know any other way."

Sesshomaru stared, falling silent, stunned into speechlessness at her words.

"You- you do this _regularly_?" he asked, trying to conceal his aghast tone. Kagome nodded.

"Never again," he declared, and Kagome looked up at him, incredulous.

"I have to, Sesshomaru," she said. "I don't know any other way-"

"Then I will teach you," he interrupted. "I will not have you enduring such agony just so you do not accidentally purify your foolish friends."

Kagome's eyes widened, and Sesshomaru saw a note of excitement flicker into them at his words.

"Are you serious?" she asked, unable to hide her eagerness. "You'll teach me to control my powers? My emotions? You'll teach me how to control it all?"

"That, and more," Sesshomaru nodded. "With one such as you, who can channel the elements, you will need to learn more restraint and refined technique, lest you blow your enemy completely away, like you nearly did me."

Kagome had the grace to look abashed.

"I will teach you how to that as well, if you wish," he said. Kagome nodded, and then mumbled something beneath her breath.

"What?" Sesshomaru asked, leaning forward. "I'm afraid I didn't hear you."

"I asked if you wanted me to teach you how to use the elements as well," Kagome said louder, blushing madly. "You know, in exchange for you teaching me about control."

Sesshomaru snorted. "In case you haven't noticed, Kagome, I am a youkai," he said flatly. "There is no possible way for me to harness miko techniques..."

"It's not miko," Kagome blurted, before stopping herself, blushing madly. Sesshomaru looked at her, shocked, as he realized what her words meant.

"Your... ability," he said, for lack of a better word, "to control the elements is not from being a miko."

Kagome shook her head.

"Then how is it that you have garnished such power?" he asked, incredulous.

Kagome looked up at him here, no longer embarrassed by her outburst.

"I'm not quite sure," she said honestly. "All I know is that when I taught myself to use my miko powers through meditation, I became more aware of the elements, and I developed a sense of understanding for everything around me. With that understanding came the ability to talk to them and use them."

"Remember the time a few days ago where we watched the sunrise together?" she asked, and Sesshomaru nodded. "I asked you if you understood the sunrise, but you did not. That's kind of what I mean. You're smart enough and powerful enough to grasp the concept, so I can teach you to understand the elements and the world. It's not really a verbal thing to be spoken, but I can guide you to finding the knowledge yourself. If you want, that is."

Sesshomaru paused, considering. Such power would be a huge asset to have in battle, especially in the coming feud with Naraku. Having control of the winds would render his miasma futile, as well as the powers of his second-born child. Being able to summon energy from the earth would make his blows with Tokijin more powerful than ever, and certainly capable of blasting the cursed hanyou apart. And with power over fire and water as well, there was no telling what would be able to stop him.

Plus, he'd be able to spend more time with Kagome as well.

Turning back to face Kagome, who was looking at him worriedly, he smiled.

"I find your proposition... acceptable," he said delicately, shoving down the twinge of excitement that threatened to leak into his voice. "It is an honor to be chosen to partake of the great power you possess."

Kagome blushed a brilliant red, ducking her head.

"You flatter me," she said, embarrassed, "but thank you."

Sesshomaru withheld his remarks that he only spoke the truth, deciding it would merely heighten her embarrassment, instead choosing to rise from the ground, extending a hand.

"Would you like me to walk you back to your camp?" he offered. "If need be, I can explain this new arrangement to your friends."

Clasping his hand, Kagome pulled herself up, smiling at him, grateful.

"Thanks. I don't know how I'd've handled InuYasha alone," she said honestly. "Thanks."

"The pleasure's all mine," Sesshomaru assured her. "Now, which was is your camp?"

The two headed out of the valley, Kagome murmuring directions to herself as they walked. It was a considerable while later that Sesshomaru realized that she hadn't let go of his hand and found that he didn't mind in the slightest.

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What did you think? Here, the story really begins, or at least the plot I had planned out ahead of time. Please, review, and let me know what you think! Please, review!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Ooh, look! A new chapter of Elements! All Japanese translation notes will be at the end.

Okay, now, you people. There are **107 members** of ff dot net here who have this story on story alert, and I barely got a _**quarter** _of them to review last time. If you are one of those people who has this story alerted, or if you just read it, _**please **_review!

**Elements**

**Chapter 7**

Sesshomaru was a youkai who prided himself on never being caught off guard.

It was an essential skill to have in the Sengoku Jidai, especially for a taiyoukai. He was always prepared for anything that might occur. When the South had attacked his lands, his army had been primed and ready, resulting in a massacre not unlike a child's foot upon a colony of june bugs in the summer. When visiting diplomats or courtiers passed out at the sight of his demon form, Sesshomaru always had the smelling salts ready. And when Rin injured herself playing in the garden, the necessary dressings and bandages were always nearby. No matter what the situation, Sesshomaru prided himself on never being fazed and always having a response at the ready.

Thus, when Sesshomaru discovered that in addition to being an extremely powerful miko, Kagome could read and could speak intelligently about advanced concepts, a possibility he had never before entertained, he was completely thrown.

In his past encounters, Kagome had never seemed to be anything much. Sure, she was a miko, but she had hardly seemed able to speak coherently in the face of his superior battle skills, let along able to converse with him on the finer aspects of youkai warfare and theology. So, naturally, he was completely stunned when she had casually mentioned that she had read about demon politics as if she had been commenting on the weather as they were walking along, and it took him several long moments to regain his composure.

Luckily, Kagome didn't seem to notice.

Much.

"I don't see what the big deal is, Sesshomaru," she remarked as they walked along. "You can read, can't you?"

"That's entirely besides the point," he argued. "This Sesshomaru is noble taiyoukai of high esteem and birth."

"No shit," Kagome snickered. Sesshomaru shot her a cutting look before continuing.

"You, however, are nothing of the sort," he said, brushing a tree branch out of his path. "I can tell by your mannerisms and behavior that you are a commoner, a lord's daughter at the most."

"That doesn't matter," Kagome said stubbornly. "I can still read."

"But _how_?" Sesshomaru asked. "Not only are you a commoner, but you are a _woman_, one of barely sixteen. How is it that _you_ can read?"

"Are you doubting the truth of my words, Sesshomaru?" Kagome said, her eyes sparkling at him playfully as she teased him.

"You must admit that it is highly unlikely you are speaking the truth," Sesshomaru replied, fixing her with his own expression of amusement.

"Then I propose a test," Kagome said, tossing her head. "Write something, and I will read it to you."

"Write something, and you will read it?" Sesshomaru echoed, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

"That's what I said," Kagome replied, grinning. "Something simple, though, just to prove I can do it. I don't want to be here for an hour puzzling over some demon idiom or something."

Sesshomaru smirked slightly. "If I wrote such a thing, rest assured, it would take you much longer than an hour to decipher its meaning."

Kagome laughed. "We'll see. Now, are you up for the test or not?"

"I would be more than happy to oblige you, if only to prove you wrong," Sesshomaru said, his lips quirking.

"Meanie," Kagome muttered. Sesshomaru restrained a grin.

"However," he continued. "Your test is impossible. We have no ink, brush, or scrolls."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "So write in the dirt." She dropped suddenly, bending her knees, squatting low as she drew a design into the ground with a stick.

Sesshomaru quirked an eyebrow. "And what does _that_ say?" he asked, crouching down beside her.

"Nothing. It's a smiley face," Kagome said, adding a circle around her design. She turned, offering the stick to Sesshomaru. "Go ahead. Unless, of course, you're too high and mighty to lower yourself to draw in the dirt," she teased, her eyes sparkling as she mocked him.

He snatched the stick from her, smirking.

"I'll have you know I am capable of lowering myself to much more degrading things to conquer my opponent than playing in the mud if I deem it necessary," he told her, his eyes glittering in amusement as he drew the characters into the ground. Who knew the miko could be so entertaining?

"That's true," Kagome mused, smiling. "I bet you do this sort of this with Rin all the time."

Sesshomaru looked up at her, startled, before smirking and pulling back. "You know more than you let on, miko."

"And I'm sure you do as well," she responded easily. She looked down, examining his writing, before standing.

"_Konnichiwa,"_ she read. "Hello; good afternoon. Pathetically easy, I might add, but sufficient to test my skills. Are you satisfied?" she teased, moving on through the forest.

Sesshomaru easily caught up to her. "Pathetically easy, perhaps, but remember, it _was_ you who insisted on a simple test so it wouldn't take you many hours," he said, his tone gently mocking, teasing.

"Oh! You-" Kagome turned to glare at him, but her mirth shone through in her eyes, smiling at him.

"Then perhaps another test is in order," he said, a ghost of a smile playing about his lips. Tugging her over to a nearby tree with the use of his new arm, his flexed his claws briefly before carving characters into the wood, his poison slicing through the bark.

Kagome leaned forward. _"Watashi wa Sesshomaru desu. Hajimemashite,"_ she read easily. She turned to face him, her lips quirking upward. "A more sufficient test, as it gauges my skill at kanji as well as hiragana. However," she continued, touching a fingertip to the tree, "had this been a true introduction, you would have written your part like this."

Sesshomaru felt her holy energy rise briefly and watched as she wrote a line of symbols next to his, adding on, her finger glowing slightly pink as it burned through the wood. She paused, before adding another two quick symbols and pulling away, satisfied.

"There," she announced, brushing her hand off on her skirt. "That's much better. Can we continue now?" Without waiting for an answer, she strode off once more.

Sesshomaru crouched slightly, bringing the symbols to eye level. Her characters were wide and fat, having been written with her fingertip, as opposed to his thin claw. He peered at her words, reading.

_Watashi wa Sesshomaru to moshimasu. Yoroshiku onegai itashimasu. _

And then, underneath, in katakana, as if in afterthought of the obviousness of this response,

_baka._

Sesshomaru couldn't help but smile. Surely, the girl was deliberately provoking him, and he pulled back and laughed. Kagome stopped short and turned to look at him, astonished, but the taiyoukai ignored her, still amused, before using his demon speed to catch up to her in an instant.

"_Dozo gomen nasai, Kagome-sama,"_ he apologized, his eyes twinkling as he bowed low. _"Gomen. Shitsurei shimashita. Moshi wake gozaimasen deshita,"_ he said, straightening.

They looked at each other for a long moment, before simultaneously dissolving into laughter at the irony of it all, Sesshomaru laughing quietly while Kagome giggled like a schoolgirl.

In retrospect, Sesshomaru supposed the joke really wasn't that funny, but Kagome's laughter was contagious. She just looked so relaxed, so free, so uninhibited as she laughed that he couldn't help but be drawn in and join her. As they laughed, he watched her, and he realized she was beautiful when she laughed. And, rather perversely, Sesshomaru found a strange satisfaction in the fact that he had been the one to make her laugh.

Still giggling slightly, Kagome looked up at him, smiling.

"In all my wildest dreams, I _never _thought I'd hear you say such a thing," she grinned. Sesshomaru smirked.

"Why, dear Kagome, you dream of me?" he inquired smoothly, raising an eyebrow. "I had no idea you fostered such lecherous intentions towards my person."

Kagome blushed violently and pushed Sesshomaru, as if trying to shove him out of the way.

"You wish," she retorted, tossing her hair and holding her head high, mimicking his own aristocratic behavior. "Like I would _ever_ lower myself to consorting with the likes of _you,_ even in the dreamworld." She looked at him, meeting his gaze in an entirely dignified way, before they both cracked up again.

It was amazing, really, Sesshomaru mused as they walked along. He hadn't laughed in years, judging it as a frivolous, immature activity, done only by children and fools. It was also a direct outward display of emotion, one so blunt it was practically cringe-worthy. Yet, here he was, laughing along with a human girl at her ironic comments.

Perhaps there was just something about Kagome, something that made him feel more relaxed, more at ease. It made sense; in the space of a few days, he had gone from trying to kill the girl to being equals, and, even rarer, friends. Perhaps the girl was not truly a miko after all. Perhaps she was an evil enchantress and had woven him deep into a spell, designed to get him to lower his guard around her so she could kill him.

There was a dull **_thud_** and an outraged yell, and Sesshomaru turned to see Kagome hopping up and down rather clumsily, holding one foot in her hands, yelling at a rock that she had apparently stubbed her foot on, before snatching it up and defiantly hurling it off into the forest, sending it scorching through a tree as the energy from her anger glowed around it. Satisfied, she turned sharply, her eyes glittering, her hair disarrayed, and her face flushed, glaring venomously at the spot where the rock had once been.

Sesshomaru's lips twisted into a thin smile. Enchanting, perhaps, but the girl in front of him was no enchantress. Her manner spoke volumes of innocence and naiveté, and Sesshomaru was convinced that she could never knowingly do anything harmful.

Kagome turned, straightening herself, and, catching his amusement, smiled at him.

"You should smile more often," she told him. "It makes you look more approachable."

Sesshomaru immediately schooled his features into an icy scowl.

"I am the great taiyoukai of the West," he informed her coldly. "I have no desire to look approachable."

"No, I suppose you wouldn't," Kagome mused, not deterred by his cold tone in the least as they walked on. "Shame, though. Your smile kind of lessens you, makes you more real, like a friend you might confide in instead of a ruthless killing machine."

"Why would I want to appear as a friend rather than a ruthless killing machine?" Sesshomaru asked her, convincing himself he didn't really care about her answer.

"Well, think about it," she replied as they brushed through the leaves. "It's the Warring States era, and warriors are a penny a pound. Everyone's always off trying to kill everyone else, even the humans. But nice people, those whom you can really trust, are much rarer, like a gem among a bunch of rocks. Those are the people who are truly valuable."

Sesshomaru considered. It was true; violence and fighting was plentiful, even among the ningen. He supposed that he could see the validity in her statement. She was not a fighter, after all, so it made sense that she would value a friend more than a fighter.

"Your words have some truth to them," Sesshomaru conceded. "However, you are forgetting one thing."

She turned to look at him. "What's that?"

"This Sesshomaru is no mere ningen fighter," he informed her, "and fighters of my caliber are certainly _not_ 'a penny a pound', or whatever your ridiculous saying was."

Kagome laughed at that, smiling brightly.

"That's true as well," she admitted, her eyes sparkling. "Now I need another reason to convince you. Or maybe not." She turned to face him. "Maybe I just made all that up because I like it when you smile," she said, a smile of her own on her lips.

Sesshomaru was horrified to realize that his face was heating up in response to the unexpected compliment and was even more horrified to realize that he was smiling back. He grudgingly accepted it, though. It wasn't as if he had meant to make such a lapse, and the miko had long since infiltrated his cold facade, anyway.

"That's better," Kagome said, smiling at his own smile. She paused. "You look almost as handsome as your brother like that, you know," she said casually, unable to restrain a grin, her eyes alight with mischief.

"_**What!"**_

Sesshomaru quickly pinned her up against a nearby tree, growling at her in mock-offense as he glared, playing along even though he knew she was just toying with him. Surprisingly, he found he didn't mind. **_"What did you say?"_**

Kagome's expression was one of pure innocence as she faced him down, except for the tell-tale sparkle in her eyes that gave her game away. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she said, her eyes wide.

"You said that this Sesshomaru was less handsome than the hanyou InuYasha," he informed her, his amber eyes boring into hers. "You will retract your statement now and correct your falsehood, lest you face the consequences."

Sesshomaru felt Kagome's pulse speed up beneath him and heard her breath quicken, as if she was truly frightened, but her eyes betrayed no fear, instead, something liquid and strange seemed to swirl about in their depths, too flexible for him to pin it down and identify it, though it seemed familiar.

"Consequences?" Kagome murmured, her eyes meeting his unflinchingly, though her eyes were lidded. "And what consequences might those be?"

Sesshomaru suddenly found his mouth rather dry.

"You have insulted the taiyoukai of the West," he told her, his eyes burning into hers, his tone strangely deep and rich. "Such is an offense that can only be repaid by the offender obeying every command of the taiyoukai for the duration of the offender's life."

"Is that so?" she said, her voice husky, her cool blue gaze holding his unwaveringly, sending a thrill through him. She gently traced up his arm with her free hand, running over the silken cloth, making an odd sensation run through his veins, pooling around his middle. "And just what type of commands might that taiyoukai issue the offender?" she breathed.

She licked her lips, and Sesshomaru found himself with the increasing desire to forget about whatever the hell they were talking about and run off and give in to whatever odd feeling was consuming the both of them. Whatever it was, it had to be better than this constant struggle for words in the face of her teasing touches.

A loud **thud** echoed through the woods, followed by a yell and a shout of 'baka', and Sesshomaru pulled back to collect himself, the moment gone. Closing his eyes briefly and wondering what exactly had come over him, Sesshomaru struggled to collect himself, determined to regain his icy demeanor.

When he opened his eyes, he was surprised to see that instead of calm and collected or heated, as she had been, Kagome seemed rather annoyed, as she faced the direction where the noise had come from.

"That baka," she said venomously, and she promptly strode off in the direction of the noise. Sesshomaru followed, curious despite himself.

Up ahead, the trees were thinning, and Sesshomaru found himself peering into a clearing with a familiar-looking hanyou running around, chasing a yelling fox kit with a large bump on its head.

"**SIT!"**

Sesshomaru heard the miko yell as she strode out into the clearing but was surprised to see his brother go crashing into the ground, forming a sort of crater with the impact of his body, to be followed by a yell of "Kagome's back!" and a blur of yellow promptly glomping onto her.

"Hi, Shippo," Kagome laughed, hugging the kitsune to her warmly. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," the kit said happily. "Do you know what InuYasha did? He was so being mean! He was mad because his hair still wasn't normal and he didn't get his teeth back yet and was yelling about you so I told him if he hadn't behaved like an immature pinhead you wouldn't have had to sit him, and then he got mad and started chasing me and trying to hit me-"

Kagome laughed. "It sounds like you handled everything just fine, Shippo," she said, smiling, setting the kitsune down.

"Kagome-chan!"

"Kagome-sama!"

Sesshomaru drifted into the clearing silently, preferring to hang back among the trees until the pressing importance of her companions greeting her had passed. He watched as Kagome embraced the taijiya warmly as she had the kit.

"Hi, Sango, Miroku," she said, giving the monk a quick hug as well before pulling back. "How's everything going? It doesn't sound like I missed too much."

"Well, InuYasha didn't wake up until this morning, and then it took him a while to realize what you had done, so it was pretty normal last night," the demon slayer told her friend. "I was worried about you, though. What happened? Are you alright?"

"I must admit, I was concerned for your welfare as well, Kagome," the houshi said, stepping forward. "What if a lecherous bandit had come upon you in your time of weakness? Without protection, surely-"

"His blood probably would've boiled out his mouth," Kagome said conversationally, a strained smile on her face. "I can take care of myself."

"Keh," said a familiar voice, and Sesshomaru turned slightly to see InuYasha get up from the dirt, brushing himself off, scowling. "That's what you said before the stupid wolf idiot tried to kidnap you again."

"That was different and you know it!" Kagome objected. "I could never hurt Koga-kun!"

"Don't see why not," InuYasha sniffed. "Mangy mutt should've died long ago, anyway." He looked at her a long moment, before roughly pulling her into his arms.

"InuYasha!"

Irritated, Sesshomaru found himself growing highly annoyed as Kagome's face softened and she hugged the hanyou back. She had been mad at the hanyou, hadn't she? Why was she making up with him so fast?

"Don't ever do that again," InuYasha murmured against her. "When I found out you hadn't come back all night-"

"It's okay, InuYasha," Kagome said, pulling back, smiling at him softly. "I can take care of myself now, remember?"

"Though that point, too, is debatable," Sesshomaru said aloud, reclining against the tree casually, deciding he had had enough of being looked over.

InuYasha's eyes immediately snapped over to him, narrowing.

"Sesshomaru," he snarled, his hand automatically reaching for Tessaiga. "What do you want?"

"No, InuYasha!" Sango said quickly. "We're not sure what effects Kagome's rock had on your fighting!"

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow and drifted over to his half-brother, lazily casting a cursory glance over the tense hanyou.

"My my my, InuYasha," he remarked, lifting a lock of streaked black and silver hair from his brother's shoulder. "It seems that your inferior blood is showing through. Or perhaps you just enjoy looking like a slob?"

"You idiot," InuYasha snarled, but Kagome laid a hand on him, restraining his anger, to Sesshomaru's indignation.

"It seems Kagome-sama was most angry with InuYasha last night and her miko powers shone through," the monk said, stepping forwards and bowing, ever the peace keeper. "InuYasha's odd appearance is merely a side-effect that will wear off soon enough, Sesshomaru-sama. You have no need to be concerned."

"It was InuYasha who put the miko into such a state yesterday?" Sesshomaru turned his gaze on Kagome, who met it steadily, unflinching.

"I told you that earlier, Sesshomaru," Kagome said hotly. "You were too busy admonishing me like a child to pay any attention, I suppose."

Kagome's defiant gaze met his own cool one directly as they stared at each other, neither wanting to submit as the others watched on.

"Um, Kagome-chan?" the taijiya asked hesitantly. "Pardon me for interrupting, but why is Sesshomaru here in the first place?"

"That's what I wanted to know in the first place," InuYasha grumbled.

Kagome blinked and broke away, turning to her friend.

"Huh? Oh, Sesshomaru's going to help me learn to control my powers," Kagome told her. "He came along to help explain things."

"_He's_ going to help you control you powers?" InuYasha said incredulously. "_Sesshomaru?_ Are you serious?"

"Yes," Kagome said calmly, fixing her intense gaze upon the hanyou. "Why? Did you think it would be _Koga?_"

InuYasha blushed hotly at her words, embarrassed, and Sesshomaru smirked, proud and impressed at the miko's ability to push his brother's buttons so easily. It was an art, one he himself was a master at.

InuYasha's eyes narrowed his eyes at his brother's smirk, but backed off.

"Fine," he snorted, dismissive. "Have him teach you. Whatever. Just don't come crying to me when it doesn't work."

InuYasha turned away, only to find Sesshomaru suddenly standing in front of him.

"This Sesshomaru is a master of self-control, InuYasha, and he will only teach Kagome the best skills," he informed the hanyou coldly. "If he was not, you would lie in pieces right now."

"Is that so?" InuYasha sneered, his hand on Tessaiga.

"Do you care to test it?" Sesshomaru responded, his own hand resting on the hilt of Tokijin.

"That's **enough!**" Kagome said shortly, shoving her way in between them and pushing them apart. "Honestly! You two take sibling rivalry to the max!" She glared at them both, before turning to InuYasha, who flinched. "You, InuYasha, go get some water for breakfast! We're not going after Naraku unless everyone gets something decent to eat!"

InuYasha scowled but moved off to obey, grumbling. Sesshomaru watched as Kagome watched the hanyou go for a moment, before rounding on him.

"And you," she said curtly. "You are coming with me for a moment so we can get a few things straight!"

"Am I?" he asked idly, looking down at the annoyed girl, intrigued. It wasn't as if she could force him.

"Yes, you are," Kagome informed him. "Unless, of course, you would like everyone else to hear your private business as well?"

Sesshomaru bit back a scowl but moved to follow the girl. She was cleverer than he thought.

Kagome led them into the forest surrounding the clearing with short, powerful strides, still angry, before turning around to face him. Sesshomaru watched as her anger vanished, leaving her looking fatigued.

"Honestly, Sesshomaru," she said, her voice tired. "Did you have to provoke him? You know he's sensitive about things like that."

"I believe it was he who provoked this Sesshomaru first," he told her, smirking.

Kagome rolled her eyes. "Go ahead, just play the blame game. Come on, Sesshomaru. You knew this was going to be awkward. Why couldn't you just be the better man and let it go?"

Sesshomaru stiffened. "This Sesshomaru is the better person," he told her. "Who was the one to start going for swords, and who was the one to keep their temper? I am infinitely better than InuYasha."

"Well, then show it next time, okay?" Kagome said, smiling slightly. "Heaven knows I have enough trouble with InuYasha as it is."

Sesshomaru remembered the monk's remark.

"It was he you fought with last night," he remarked. "InuYasha was what had you so upset. Did he-" he struggled to remember. "Did he do something offensive again?"

Kagome tilted her head, curious. "Did he do what?" she asked.

"A few days ago, after you healed him, you were cross with InuYasha because he 'kissed' you," Sesshomaru told her. "Did he do that again?"

Looking mortified, Kagome colored.

"No, no he didn't," she coughed, her cheeks bright red. "It was just an argument over something silly that got out of control, that's all."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at her reaction.

"What exactly is a 'kiss', Kagome?" he asked her quizzically. "I had thought it to be something offensive, but your embarrassment seems to say there is more."

Kagome looked like she wanted to die.

"Well, it's- it's," she said, flustered. "It's something humans do with someone they care about – on the lips – you know?" She looked up hopefully, but Sesshomaru shook his head. She sighed.

"I can't believe you don't know this," she muttered, shaking her head. "Then again, Shippo didn't know either, so it must just be a thing with youkai." She looked up at him, looking resigned, and faced him.

"This is a kiss," she said.

Sesshomaru was about to ask her what she meant when her lips abruptly descended upon his own, pressing against his as she cupped his face gently, her eyes closed. She kissed him softly before pulling back, her eyes opening as she moved away.

Sesshomaru looked at her, astonished, gently running his fingers over his lips, where hers had been only moments before. Kagome just stood there awkwardly, watching him.

"Well, that's a kiss," she said, her face coloring as she looked down at the ground. "So now you know. Well- uh- I guess I'll see you later about the controlling my powers thing. How about- um- tomorrow at dawn?"

She moved back quickly, her embarrassment palpable as she went into the clearing. "I'll see you then, Sesshomaru!" she called, quickly vanishing through the trees and rejoining her friends.

Sesshomaru remained there a moment longer, his fingers still upon his lips, tracing them, before he smiled.

"Dawn is fine, Kagome," he said aloud, turning to go. "Dawn is fine."

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_**Translation notes:** Sesshomaru's words are a common introductory phrase, used when introducing yourself for the first time to an equal. Translated, they are roughly. "I'm Sesshomaru. I'm pleased to meet you" though Hajimemashite translated literally means 'for the first'. It is said to clarify that you're meeting the person for the first time. _

_When Kagome changes his words, she makes it read, "I humbly call myself Sesshomaru. I humbly beg you to treat me favorably" in very polite language, such as one might use to towards an emperor or high diplomat. Sesshomaru plays along in his response, apologizing and begging her forgiveness for his horrible rudeness. (Like Sesshomaru would ever be serious saying such a thing...)_

So, what did you all think? What'd you think of it? What did you think of the ending? The beginning? The whole thing?

Remember to let me know in a review! If you read it, please review! I read and cherish every one! Please, review!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Many apologies for the long delay in updates. I was very, very sick in the hospital. But I have returned now, and, thanks to all your faithful reviews, have updated once again! Also, many thanks to all those who voted for my story on **A Single Spark!** I won an award! YES! Thank you all!

As always, Japanese translation notes are at the end.

**Elements**

**Chapter 8**

As agreed, Sesshomaru met Kagome at a clearing the next morning at dawn, who was meditating peacefully as he approached.

Sitting down beside her silently, he removed his armor and swords, laying them aside in a gesture of well-meaning. After all, she was here to teach him, and he had no intentions of starting things off in a bad way.

As if sensing his presence (which he didn't doubt she could do), Kagome opened her eyes.

"_Ohayo gozaimasu,_ Sesshomaru."

"_Ohayo._"

The two sat beside each other in companionable silence for a moment, neither one exactly sure how to proceed.

Sesshomaru supposed were he anyone else, he would feel frightfully silly right now, sitting in the middle of an open field, clad only in a kimono with a miko at his side. It hardly mattered, though. Kagome had said she would teach him, and teach him she would.

But in the meantime, he waited patiently. After all, today, Kagome was to be the teacher, and it would be best if he were to follow her lead.

"Sesshomaru," Kagome said finally, turning to face him as she broke the silence. "I've never taught anyone anything like this before."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. "I don't doubt it."

Kagome flushed. "Well, I'm just saying- you know- that this may not be the smoothest course- but I'm _trying_- and-"

Smirking, Sesshomaru took her hand in his, stopping her abruptly.

"Kagome," he said, looking at her. "Today this Sesshomaru is the student, and you are the teacher. You have no reason to justify anything to me. I will be grateful to learn anything you have to teach me."

Kagome colored slightly, looking away, speaking volumes of her innocence and naïvete. "Are you sure?"

"How else is one to learn?" Sesshomaru asked, truly puzzled. "Nothing is ever going to get done if the positions of authority are not properly established."

Kagome laughed. "I suppose you're right. Let's get started, then."

The two folded their legs into a traditional sitting position. Kagome took a deep breath, as if readying herself, Sesshomaru noticed, before speaking.

"In order to control the elements, you must first understand them," Kagome began. "After you begin to understand the elements, then you must respect them and their power. Only after you fully understand an element and respect its power will it allow you to use it at your leisure."

"How do you control the elements?" Sesshomaru asked, interrupting. "With a spell?"

"I thought I was the teacher," Kagome teased, and Sesshomaru looked away, rolling his eyes at her chastisment. Kagome smiled at him thoughtfully before answering.

"To be honest, I'm not really sure," she said mildly. "Once you understand an element, it's mostly an unconscious thing, kind of like walking."

Sesshomaru whirled around, astonished, trying not to gape.

"Controlling the very forces of the universe that bind nature together comes to you _unconsciously?_" he asked incredulously.

"Well, yeah," Kagome said, smiling slightly. "How do you think you do that flying air cloud trick, anyway?"

"I-"

Sesshomaru paused.

How _did_ he do the air cloud trick?

Granted, he had never really thought about it before, but now that he did, it didn't make sense. It wasn't formed with his demon energy, he didn't say a spell or anything, and he certainly hadn't _learned_ to do it.

It just sort of... _happened_, whenever he wanted it to.

"I suppose you thought it was an inuyoukai trick passed down?" Kagome asked, her eyes sparkling. "I can tell you right now that it's not. That's your dominant element, manifesting through you."

Sesshomaru struggled to keep up. "Dominant element?"

Kagome nodded. "Mostly everyone has one. It's usually indicated through your personality traits or quirks, such as with you, your aloofness and intelligence. But if its not, you can always check here." She took his arm, turning over his hand.

"The palm?" he asked, curious.

"Mmhmm," Kagome nodded. "See your short palm with the long, lean fingers?" she asked, tracing them. "They mark you as an intellectual, an aristocrat, one not to be trifled with to anyone who can read palms. It also reveals that your dominant element is air, as you have what is called an _air hand._"

"So the village fortune tellers and soothsayers have some credibility?" he scoffed.

Kagome looked up through her bangs, smiling. "Perhaps."

"I shall have to make more of an effort not to kill them, then," he deadpanned. Kagome laughed.

"So- what does that mean?" Sesshomaru asked, keeping his curiousity from his tone. "What does it mean that my dominant element is air? What does it do?"

"It just means you're more aligned spiritually with the air," Kagome said simply. "Because you're more alike, it'll be easier for you to use it, as opposed to the other elements."

Sesshomaru raised and eyebrow. "More alike?"

Kagome grinned. "I _told_ you you had to understand the elements first, before you could use them," she smiled. "The elements have personalities and desires, just like you and me, though not as apparent. Your personality aligns closest with that of air, making it easier for you to understand it without consciously trying."

Sesshomaru was getting lost very quickly. Elements having _personalities?_ This was ridiculous. The miko _did_ seem to know what she was talking about, though, so Sesshomaru hurried on.

"Does everyone have one?" he asked. "Are they all the same?"

"Yeah. Well, mostly, and no," Kagome said. "Most people have one, but it differs from person to person. Like InuYasha's is fire, Miroku's is earth, and Sango's is water."

"And their dominant elements reflect their personalities?" Sesshomaru asked, slowly starting to grasp it.

"Yes," she answered, smiling. Sesshomaru returned her smile, before pausing.

"What is _your_ element?" he asked.

"I'm the exception," Kagome said, grinning.

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "The exception?"

"Yep," Kagome confirmed, smiling. "Tell me, Sesshomaru: can you name all the elements that everything in the world is comprised of?"

"Earth, air, fire, water," Sesshomaru rattled off easily. Even youkai pups knew this.

"Good," said Kagome. "Now, what element is a house made from?"

"Earth," Sesshomaru responded.

"A person?"

"All four."

"Very good." She paused, her eyes sparkling, alight with mischief, before asking, "Now, Sesshomaru, what element is miasma made from?"

Sesshomaru paused.

_Miasma?_

Miasma could be _any_ of them, really. It came from those earthen golem dolls that Naraku was so fond of all the time, so that was a possibility, but it was also a cloud of poisonous air, so wouldn't it be that instead? And miasma burned the lungs and scorched the land, giving it properties of fire, too, but it could rain miasma as well, so was it water as well?

Thoroughly stumped, Sesshomaru took a guess.

"Air?"

"A good try, but no," Kagome smiled. "It's actually made out of the same element that your youkai energy is."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened. Energy was made out of elements, too? His schoolmasters from his youth had been searching for explanations for that for years, and this mere slip of a girl had found one?

It was incredible.

"What is it?" Sesshomaru asked, trying to keep his voice even. Kagome smiled.

"Darkness," she replied.

Sesshomaru paused, considering.

_Darkness?_

As the incredible, ridiculous, off-the-wall theory though it was, if he suspended his disbelief long enough to _consider_ Kagome's words, it sort of made sense, in a way. All the effects of miasma were dark and evil, and though they weren't exclusive to any one of the fours elements he had been brought up knowing, they all seemed to fit under this new category of _darkness._

Perhaps Kagome was smarter than he thought...

"So miasma is made with the element of darkness?" Sesshomaru asked, turning back to look at the girl. "And youki energy is as well?"

"Hai," Kagome nodded. "That's why Naraku doesn't have a normal dominant element. His dominant element is darkness, as his personality is closest to that. But beings like that are rare."

Recalling Naraku's cruel, sadistic apathy for anything that didn't benefit him or hurt others in some twisted, evil way, Sesshomaru nodded. Darkness certainly dominated Naraku's soul.

Just then, another thought occurred to him, as he remembered what else she had said.

"How is it then that all youkai are not dominated by darkness, if their energy is controlled by it?" Sesshomaru asked, hiding his concern. "You said the dominant element of this Sesshomaru was air, not darkness."

"That's because it is," Kagome said, smiling slightly. "Just because your energy is that of the element darkness doesn't mean that _you_ are. Youkai are individual beings with their own thoughts, feelings, and desires, just like people. It's only when a youkai's personality gives completely into the darkness in his youki that his element changes to darkness."

Sesshomaru nodded slowly in understanding. That made more sense. Though, it didn't really explain why she had told him about all this. _She_ was not a demon, so surely this wasn't her dominant element?

"I think Naraku's used to be fire, before he changed, you know," she went on aloud. "As Onigumo, I mean. It makes the most sense."

"I can understand this," Sesshomaru said, looking at Kagome oddly. "But Kagome, you are a miko. Darkness is not _your_ dominant element."

Kagome laughed.

"Still on about that, are you?" she teased, smiling. Sesshomaru smirked back, refusing to be goaded. "You have enough information now to figure out what my element is now, Sesshomaru. Try to figure it out on your own."

Sesshomaru paused, thinking hard. Kagome grinned.

"I'll give you a hint," she said, her eyes sparkling merrily. "It's the exact opposite of Naraku's."

Sesshomaru considered, deliberating slowly. Something wasn't fitting quite right with this new information Kagome had given him, or else, it was incomplete, which must be the answer. Dwelling on her words of _the opposite,_ Sesshomaru was struck with sudden inspiration.

Tossing a new element into the mix completely ruined the balance of the universe, Sesshomaru realized. Everything had an equal counterpart, created that way to balance the world. Earth had air, fire had water, and darkness had...?

Comprehension slowly dawned over Sesshomaru's face.

"Light," he breathed. "Your element is that of light."

And from the way Kagome was beaming at him with pride, Sesshomaru knew he had gotten it right.

"So there are _six_ elements," Sesshomaru said, his mind racing. "Earth, air, fire, water, darkness, and now light." He turned to look at her. "Is that what your purification power is made of?"

"As well as any other holy energy," Kagome nodded. "It's the counterpart to your youki."

"And... not all priestess' dominant element is light?" Sesshomaru asked, tentative.

"Correct," she confirmed. "Because mine is is why I can purify the jewel shards. I haven't met anyone else who could."

Sesshomaru thought for a moment.

"Before your soul was dominated by light and was so pure, what was your dominant element?" he asked. "There had to be a time before. Perhaps when you were a child?"

"Earth," Kagome answered immediately. "I don't remember very well, but I know for sure that my personality lay closest to that of earth."

Sesshomaru found himself oddly pleased at that, though he had no real reason to. Though earth was the natural balance of air, it wasn't as if it _mattered _or anything.

"So, now that you have a basic rundown on all the elements, do you want to start preparing to use one of them?" Kagome asked, her eyes sparkling. Sesshomaru whirled around, disbelieving.

"Oh, come on, now," she teased, grinning. "You didn't think I'd teach you all about the elements without at least starting you on your training, did you?"

Sesshomaru felt a rush of excitement flood through him at her words.

"I would appreciate that," he acknowledged, trying to keep the anticipation from his voice.

Kagome smirked.

"We don't _have_ to if you don't want to," she said, musing aloud. "After all, you hardly seem eager, and I don't want to toil my student needlessly..."

Grabbing her arm and yanking her towards him, Sesshomaru growled, making Kagome's eyes widen in shock.

"No," he said firmly. "We will begin training _now,_ like you said."

Kagome looked at him a moment longer, her blue eyes holding his amber gaze for a long moment, before she pulled back, laughing.

"Apparently someone _is _excited, if you respond to my teasing so forcefully," she laughed. "But alright. We'll start your training today." She turned to face him again, cocking her head. "Is there any particular element you wish to master first?"

"Earth," Sesshomaru responded, his mind flying back two days prior when he has seen the girl in front of him channel raw energy from the earth, to be used and bent to her will. He cleared his throat. "I mean, I would like to do earth first," he said, watching her for a response.

His teacher considered, looking thoughtful.

"Earth... would be a good place to start," Kagome mused aloud. "Controlling earth not only allows you to do the things you would expect with it, but also channel it's energy into yourself, to be used for other purposes."

"What other things?" Sesshomaru found himself asking. So far, he'd only seen her raw energy manipulation, which seemed powerful enough to him.

Kagome smiled, and, reaching over, plucked a flower from nearby in the field. Drawing it back to her, she concentrated for a moment, before miraculously, the flower began to grow.

Sesshomaru watched in fascination as the flower's stem lengthened and thickened, resembling a thick vine, and more flowers began to bloom off of it, with other stems twirling around the main one, bending and growing into a wreath of violets, weaving together at the ends.

Finished, Kagome smiled, before tossing him the wreath. He caught it instinctually, before turning it over in his hands, examining it.

"Things like that," Kagome said, smiling, and Sesshomaru looked up, and, unable to help himself, smiled back.

"Thank you," Sesshomaru said quietly.

"No problem," Kagome smiled. "It'll make a nice present for Rin."

The two paused for a moment, before Kagome resumed where she had broken off.

"Now," Kagome said. "Earth, while a good place to start, might be a bit hard for you to learn at first. So, we might be better of starting with something easier for you, like air, and working our way up-"

Sesshomaru growled.

"Why would earth be hard for me to learn?" he demanded, not caring of their roles of teacher and student any longer. Kagome turned to look at him, surprised at his frustration.

"It's just- earth's personality may be a bit difficult for you to grasp at first," Kagome explained, startled by his outburst. "If we start with something easier like air, that way, you can build you confidence up first, before we try something like-"

"This Sesshomaru has no need to work up to anything!" he snapped, truly annoyed this time. "This Sesshomaru is capable of learning anything he puts his mind to, and this Sesshomaru wishes to learn the element of earth first!"

He glared at her, as if daring her to object. Kagome stared at him, stunned, before a slow grin spread across her face.

"Maybe even fire would be a better first choice for you," she murmured aloud. "But alright. We'll do earth. But I warn you, it won't be easy."

"This Sesshomaru has never been one to cower from things just because they are 'not easy'," he informed her. Kagome laughed.

"Okay, Sesshomaru," she smiled. "I believe you. We'll do earth, okay? Now, can you please sit down?"

Startled, Sesshomaru realized that at some point in his fervor to get her to teach him earth he had leapt to his feet without realizing it. Slightly embarrassed by his lapse, he sat down again, folding his legs. Kagome smiled.

"Much better," she remarked. "Now, the first step to learning an element is to understand it."

"Understand it," Sesshomaru repeated dutifully.

"Yes," Kagome nodded. "And in order to understand it, you have to be able to know what the earth wants and empathize with that desire. Following so far?"

Sesshomaru nodded.

"So, as your teacher, then, I'm going to tell you what it is the earth wants and guide you in discovering it for yourself," Kagome continued. "When you truly understand it and respect the earth, the rest should come naturally."

"How are you going to guide me in this discovery?" Sesshomaru asked.

"Oh, I don't know. First, just by telling you, I suppose, and then by showing you," she shrugged. "I've never taught anyone this before, so I guess we'll have to play it by ear."

"So, then, Sesshomaru," she grinned, her eyes sparkling again. "What is it that you think the earth wants most of all?"

Sesshomaru looked at Kagome blankly.

"You are expecting me to theorize about an abstract concept's _feelings?_" he asked in disbelief.

"Sure," Kagome said, smiling. "Why not? What do you think I did to figure all this out on my own?"

Sesshomaru didn't have an answer to that, so he ignored her question, instead choosing to focus on the first one.

What did the earth want? What _did_ the earth want? Surely not anything normal, like being superior over the other elements, like he would want if _he_ were the earth, but then again, Kagome had said he would have trouble understanding the earth's motives.

"To last forever?" Sesshomaru ventured, guessing. Kagome looked at him curiously.

"It figures that you'd say something like that," she remarked. "Why 'to last forever'?"

"The earth is constantly healing itself," Sesshomaru said, explaining his reasoning. "If there is an explosion, in time, the earth will heal, instead of just letting the damage be. This constant reparation makes it appear that it wants to last forever. And the earth has certainly been around for a long time, has it not?"

Kagome smiled. "Not a bad guess," she acknowledged. "But not correct either. Sure, the earth wants to last as long as it can, but then again, what or who doesn't? No, what matters is _why_ the earth wants to last so long."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. To him, it seemed the question would be why _wouldn't_ the earth want to last forever. Kagome sighed.

"This is going to be harder than I thought," she murmured. Raising her head, she looked directly at him. "The earth's main desire is to protect others, Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru blinked. _Protect others?_

"Think about it," Kagome said tiredly, reading his expression. "What does the earth _do,_ Sesshomaru?"

He considered.

"Nothing, really," he remarked. "All the earth really does is provide nourishment and a home for plants and others-"

"Exactly!" Kagome exclaimed. "The earth exists not to serve itself, but to serve others!"

"But why?" Sesshomaru asked, not comprehending. "Surely a powerful element like the earth could use its strength and energy in a different way if it so desired. Why waste it on others?"

"Because that's what it _wants_, Sesshomaru," Kagome said, frustrated. "That's the earth's personality. It _wants_ to protect and provide for others. It _likes_ helping them out. The earth is naturally caring and compassionate, offering the necessities of life to all it can."

"But _why?_" Sesshomaru said, still confused. "Does the earth not understand the likelihood that those that take advantage of its care giving will never be able to repay it back?"

"It understands that perfectly!" Kagome exclaimed. "It just doesn't _matter,_ Sesshomaru! The earth is selfless like that! It gives and gives, and it will continue to give until it has nothing more _to_ give!"

"But- why?"

"AUGH!"

Kagome got up from her seat and stomped around the grass, frustrated. Sesshomaru watched in slight astonishment as pink sparks of power leapt up from beneath her feet before dissipating into the air. After stomping around for a bit, Kagome sat down, rubbing her temples, and took several slow, deep breaths.

"Okay," she said tiredly. "Sesshomaru. I think that's going to be it for today's lesson."

Recalling when her emotions had gotten control of her and her purification powers had _really_ spiraled out of control, Sesshomaru wisely kept his mouth shut.

"Okay- um, for next time..." she looked around, thinking. "Just try to get a better understanding of what the earth wants. Meditate, and then try to understand it, okay?"

"Okay," Sesshomaru agreed. "When shall we meet again?"

"Um... ano..." Kagome paused. "Is tomorrow at dawn alright for you?"

Sesshomaru nodded.

"Okay then," Kagome sighed, running her fingers through her hair as she got up. "I'll see you tomorrow then, Sesshomaru. Oh, and bring Rin with you tomorrow, okay? I think she might enjoy the lesson."

"Hai," Sesshomaru said, watching her gather her bow and arrows and turn to go. On a wild impulse, he called out after her, "Kagome!"

She paused, turning, looking at him thoughtfully. "What is it, Sesshomaru?"

Sesshomaru bit his lip, slightly embarrassed at his outburst, wondering how best to phrase his words.

"I am- truly sorry I was not able to understand what you were teaching me fully," he said finally. "I really do appreciate you teaching me. I will strive to do better, Kagome. I will do my best."

Kagome's face softened, and her lips curled into a smile.

"I know that, Sesshomaru," she said gently. "Don't worry. I'm not giving up on you yet."

With that, she turned to stride off into the forest, back to her camp, leaving Sesshomaru sitting there, smiling in the field, hardly able to wait until the next dawn arrived.

¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸

_Translation notes: '**Ohayo gozaimasu' **is a formal way to say **good morning**. '**Ohayo'** also means **good morning**, but is less formal._

So, another chapter done. I can't wait to write the next one! I have it all planned out in my mind.

Read it? PLEASE review! Reviews encourage an author like nothing else**. Please **review! It only takes a moment, and it is cherished for much longer than that. Please, review!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Curse you, Sesshomaru, and your I'm-too-high-and-mighty-to-show-emotion attitude! You make it so hard to write you for this sort of plot where you're required to show a degree of interest in something new! Grrr!

Sesshomaru may be partially OOC in this chapter. _Partially._ I've worked _hard_ to make sure he doesn't step too far outside the lines. Many thanks to Mujitsu for betaing, as always!

Please, at the end, don't forget to review!

**Elements**

**Chapter 9**

"Kagome-san!"

Sesshomaru watched on as Rin flung herself around Kagome's shins forcefully in her excitement, glomping onto her. Kagome's eyes widened as she stumbled backwards, teetering precariously, trying her best to maintain her balance as Rin tittered at her feet.

Sesshomaru's lips twitched. The miko was always amusing, in one way or another.

Failing miserably, Kagome toppled backwards onto the grass in a rather undignified sprawl, with Rin latched onto her legs all the while, still squealing on as Sesshomaru watched.

"Kagome-san! Kagome-san!" Rin said excitedly, looking up at the older girl through wide eyes. "Sesshomaru-sama said that Rin gets to come on a trip with you today! He said that we were going to have a teaching-lesson with you! Are you going to be Sesshomaru-sama's teacher, Kagome-san? Rin wants to learn too! Can you teach Rin too, Kagome-san?" Rin suddenly paused, as if confused, and looked at Kagome curiously. "Kagome-san? Why are you on the ground?"

Kagome flushed brilliantly, clearly embarrassed, and Sesshomaru withheld a snicker.

"Yes, Kagome-_san_," Sesshomaru said, his tone mocking. "Whatever are you doing on the forest floor? Did you fall down?"

Kagome shot him a venomous glare, before sitting up and struggling to her feet, gently inching Rin down and off of her shins.

"I'll make _you_ 'fall down'," Kagome said darkly, shooting him a dirty look as she stood up once more.

Sesshomaru allowed a slight smirk to touch his lips in amusement as he watched the girl brush the dirt from her clothes. When she had originally suggested he bring Rin along to the lesson, he had been incredulous at her daring to try and control the rogue child, until he had realized that Kagome obviously had no idea what she was getting herself into, planning to have a civilized lesson with a child running about, especially one who was often hyperactive to the point of insanity.

So, naturally, Sesshomaru had only been too eager to bring Rin along, if only to see what would happen.

Sesshomaru's lip curled. This would be interesting.

"To answer your questions, Rin," Kagome said, picking the little girl up and spinning her around, making her giggle. "Yes, I am planning to teach Sesshomaru-sama today, and yes, I can teach you too, if you want."

"You plan on teaching Rin?" Sesshomaru cut in, his tone disdainful. "Even though she is but a child?"

Kagome looked at him oddly.

"Sure, Sesshomaru," Kagome said, looking at him curiously. "One is never to young to start learning. Right Rin?"

"Right!" Rin smiled happily for a moment before suddenly freezing. Slowly turning, she paused to gape at Kagome for a long moment, look at Sesshomaru in astonishment, and turn back to stare at Kagome in wonderment.

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow, and Kagome blinked.

"What is it?" she asked, obviously puzzled by Rin's odd actions. "Did I do something?"

"You called Sesshomaru-sama by his _name_," Rin said accusingly. "Sesshomaru-sama _never_ lets anyone call him by his _name_."

Kagome laughed. "Sesshomaru-sama and I are friends now, Rin. He refers to me by name, and he allows me to do the same."

Rin's eyes bulged, and Sesshomaru smiled slightly at her awe.

"_Really?"_ she asked in astonishment.

"Really really," Kagome confirmed, smiling. "Why? Doesn't he do that with his other friends?"

"_No_," Rin said distinctly. "Sesshomaru-sama _never_ lets people do that. And if they do, he kills them."

Kagome laughed. "That sounds like Sesshomaru-sama," she admitted, amused. She bent her legs, crouching down to Rin's level. "Can you keep a secret, Rin?" she said, her eyes sparkling.

"Yes! Rin can keep a secret!" Rin exclaimed excitedly. "What is it, Kagome-san? What is the secret?"

Kagome pretended to look dubious. "Well, I don't know..." she said, deliberating.

"Rin will keep the secret!" Rin insisted intently. "Oh please, Kagome-san! What is the secret? What is the secret?"

Kagome grinned. "All right, Rin. I'll tell you." She leaned forward to Rin closely, who leaned in eagerly.

"Sesshomaru-sama _can't_ kill me," she said in a loud stage-whisper. "That's why he lets me call him by name and why we became friends."

Rin gasped in astonishment, before clapping her hands excitedly. "Kagome-san is truly great if Sesshomaru-sama cannot kill her!" she exclaimed, amazed. "Rin must call Kagome-san 'Kagome-sama' from now on!"

Sesshomaru was amused to note that Kagome looked decidedly uncomfortable at this sudden turn of events. "That's really not necessary, Rin," she tried to object, but Rin shook her head violently at this.

"Nuh-uh! Sesshomaru-sama taught Rin to always address everyone with the proper respect!" Rin insisted. "And if Sesshomaru-sama cannot kill Kagome-san, she is truly Sesshomaru-sama's equal and must be called 'sama' just like him!"

Kagome opened her mouth to object again before pausing and considering for a moment.

"Sesshomaru-sama's equal, eh?" Kagome said slyly, looking at Sesshomaru for a long moment. Sesshomaru rolled his eyes, while Rin looked hopeful. "Well, alright then," she conceded, and Rin clapped happily.

"Yay! Kagome-san is now Kagome-sama, and Kagome-sama is going to teach Rin and Sesshomaru-sama many new things!" Rin beamed at them both for a moment, before going to run around in the grass excitedly, yelling happily.

Sesshomaru sidled over to Kagome, who stood there peacefully, watching Rin with a smile. Sensing his presence, she looked up at him, grinning.

"Your equal, eh?" she said, teasing. Sesshomaru growled.

"The day you are my equal, woman, is the day Naraku bears my child," Sesshomaru declared, and Kagome laughed.

"I'll have to let him know that you're interested, then," Kagome said, giggling. "He'll be ever so excited about having another opportunity to 'merge his body' with yours."

A smirk managed to break onto Sesshomaru's face, while Kagome dissolved into giggles at her own joke.

"You find that funny, do you?" he remarked, and Kagome laughed again.

"Yes!" Kagome giggled, her amusement infectious. "Oh, that'd be so funny! Just imagine the look on Naraku's face if you propositioned him! And then you'd have to invite Kagura, just so you could see her expression too..."

"Kagura?" Sesshomaru questioned.

"Of course, silly. It's obvious you two have a thing for each other," Kagome smiled, elbowing him good-naturedly. "Then again, she'd probably _kill_ you for going for Naraku..."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. "This Sesshomaru has never been interested in Kagura," he said.

Kagome turned to look at him, still amused. "No?" she said, smiling. "I thought for sure... I mean, she's the only demon who's hit on you that you haven't outright slaughtered..."

"Perhaps this Sesshomaru simply didn't notice or didn't wish to be bothered with dirtying his hands," he remarked. non-commital. Kagome laughed.

"No," she mused, turning back to watch Rin again. "I suppose you wouldn't..."

Sesshomaru turned to look at Rin as well, who had gotten tired with running and was now contenting herself with picking flowers in the field.

"You think you could teach Rin as well?" he asked, watching his ward laugh as the flowers all spilled out of her hands.

Kagome nodded. "I think it'd be a good idea," she said. "Rin's not really skilled enough to handle the energy channeling bit, but she might be able to get the rest. And if she can, what harm is there? She'll just use it to play in the flowers, and she'll be better able to protect herself if the need arises. Her element is earth, too, so it shouldn't be too hard." She paused to look at Sesshomaru for a moment. "You don't mind, do you?" she asked.

He paused, considering. Although it was doubtful that Rin would be able to do anything with such power, let alone protect herself, it wasn't as if she'd be able to come to harm from it. At the most, it would inspire her with a respect for nature and provide her more amusement when she was alone.

Sesshomaru turned to look at Rin, who had abandoned her flower-picking and was now skipping about happily, and sighed.

What harm could it be?

"She can learn," Sesshomaru conceded. "But this Sesshomaru finds it hard to believe that a concept so difficult for one such as I to grasp would be able to be gained by a mere child."

Kagome smiled. "It's not about _age_, Sesshomaru," she chided. "It's about who you are inside."

"...what?"

But Sesshomaru's question went unanswered as Kagome went off to go get Rin, skipping happily all the while.

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"This is a god tree," Kagome said, looking up its massive trunk. "It's not as old as Goshinboku, but it's getting there. See the little birds' nests in its branches? The tree's branches provide them support, and the leaves are a shelter from the rain."

"I see it!" Rin exclaimed, peering up at the tree closely. "That's really nice of the tree, don't you think, Kagome-sama? It helps the birds like Sesshomaru-sama helps Rin!"

Kagome nodded. "Exactly, Rin."

"Do you think Rin will ever be able to be like the tree?" Rin asked hopefully. "Rin would like to be able to help people like that too, Kagome-sama."

Kagome paused, considering. "Go up and hug the tree, Rin. See if you can feel what it feels."

Rin nodded obediently and went over and embraced the tree, resting her cheek on the bark and closing her eyes. Taking a deep breath, Rin breathed in as the braches shook lightly in a lone breeze, breathing out as its leaves shook, content as she held the tree.

Sesshomaru sighed. Kagome had been taking them around to all sorts of displays of what she called "the earth element", giving a sort of spiel about each sight as they reached it. Rin had seemed to soak it all up, listening raptly and asking questions as they went along, while he seemed to lag behind.

What _was_ it about this "earth" element that made it so hard for him to grasp? Sure, he could see that the earth was protecting everything and nourishing it and all, but Kagome said that wasn't truly _understanding _it.

And he was fast getting aggravated with this whole thing.

Silently approaching Kagome, Sesshomaru stood beside her, while she watched Rin with interest, as if half-expecting something to happen.

"How is it that Rin is able to comprehend the meaning of what you are showing us so easily?" he asked, his tone measured, carefully not looking her as he watched Rin.

"She's more in-tune with the feelings behind the earth than you are," Kagome said, shrugging as she looked on. "It's in her personality; she can't help but relate to it."

"And why is it that I cannot?"

Kagome turned to look at him, considering.

"I'm not quite sure," she said honestly. "Though it's not prevalent in your personality, the elements of it are there too. Maybe I'm just not introducing it to you in the correct manner."

"What would be-"

"Shhh! Look! She's getting it! She's getting it!"

Falling silent, Sesshomaru watched as a look of dawning comprehension spread over Rin, as she opened her eyes and stepped back from the tree, simply standing there, regarding it with unspeakable awe. It was as if she had grasped some huge concept, some major truth, suddenly understanding some deep secret of the world.

"She's got it," Kagome whispered to him, her joy unhidden in her tone. "She's understood the earth."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow but said nothing, watching as Rin's look of awe was gradually replaced by one of excitement. She looked at the tree for a moment longer, before she suddenly turned and ran to Kagome, tackling her in her excitement.

"Kagome-sama! Kagome-sama! I did it! I did it!"

"Calm down, Rin," Kagome laughed, hugging the girl as tightly as she was hugging her. "I know you did. We saw you."

But Rin was too wound up for that to be all; pulling Kagome up, Rin began talking to her excitedly.

"I was hugging the tree, just like Kagome-sama said, and suddenly, it was like the tree said something to me, but only without words, and suddenly I got it! I don't know what I got, but I got it, Kagome-sama! I got it!" Rin stopped and looked up at Kagome in amazement. "Is that what you were trying to teach Sesshomaru-sama and Rin, Kagome-sama? Is that it?"

Kagome smiled and nodded.

"That's it, Rin," she smiled. "I couldn't really teach you it, but I could help you find it."

"But what _is_ it, Kagome-sama?" Rin asked, looking up at Kagome. "What _is_ it?"

Kagome crouched down to Rin's level, and Sesshomaru watched as she reached out and touched a small flower.

"Do you see this flower, Rin?" she asked. Rin nodded.

"This flower's too small to live well, Rin," Kagome said, toying with its petals lightly. "It's too short to see the sun with all the grass around. It will die soon, if it's not helped." Taking Rin's hands, Kagome put them on the ground next to the flower. "Help the flower grow, Rin. You need to help it grow."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow but watched silently as Kagome got up and stepped back, watching Rin intently. Rin closed her eyes, concentrating, as the two watched her closely.

And suddenly, amazingly, the flower began to grow.

It started slowly at first, so slowly that Sesshomaru could barely see it, but then the flower was creeping upward, the blossom getting bigger and the stem thickening as it pushed itself upward more and more, reaching out towards the sun, and Sesshomaru couldn't help but stare in amazement.

The flower kept growing, developing from a titchy, inch-tall thing hidden in the grass to a full six inches, towering above the grass, its blossom bright and blooming. Satisfied, Rin opened her eyes and stepped back, observing her work for a moment, before an incredulous expression appeared on her face and she whirled around to face Kagome.

"That's it?" she asked, astonished. "I did that? I grew that flower?"

Sesshomaru noted that Rin wasn't referring to herself in the third person. Perhaps the magnitude of whatever she had grasped had made her forget her usual habits.

"That's it," Kagome said, beaming down at her. "You grew that flower, Rin, all by yourself. You did it."

Rin gaped at the flower in amazement for a moment, before letting out a squeal of joy and rushing to hug Kagome.

"Thank you, Kagome-sama! Thank you!"

Rin ran off, excitedly putting her hands to the ground near another flower, helping this one to grow a little quicker, before moving onto another and another. Sesshomaru watched neutrally as she rushed about in her excitement, his emotions masked.

Kagome regarded Rin for a moment happily, before turning and fixing Sesshomaru with a long, hard look. Meeting his eyes for a long moment, his amber clashing with her blue, Kagome turned again and averted her gaze.

"You'll get it too, you know," she said softly. "It just takes some time."

Sesshomaru bit his lip, frustrated with himself for being read so easily, but nodded nonetheless.

"Where are we going next?" he asked tonelessly, his eyes following his ward about as she ran.

"I figured we'd go to a place where Inuyasha recently used the wind scar," Kagome said, beginning to walk again, Sesshomaru falling into step beside her. "It'll show you how the earth perseveres, bringing life back to areas where there is none."

"And how it constantly cares for all, its efforts bring the flowers back to the area," Sesshomaru deadpanned. "Just like everything else we've seen so far."

Kagome shot him a half-smile. "Maybe you should teach the class," she teased.

Sesshomaru held back a sigh.

"I understand what you've been telling me, Kagome," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose tightly, "but I still don't get it. How is it that Rin gets it and I don't?"

Kagome laid a hand on his arm lightly, and Sesshomaru paused to look at her, his eyes meeting hers.

"It's okay," she said, stroking his arm lightly as she looked at him. "You'll get it. It's just in Rin's nature more than it's in yours."

"Perhaps it is not in this Sesshomaru's nature at all."

Kagome sighed, giving his arm a squeeze before moving away again. "You know that's not true, Sesshomaru," she said tiredly.

"Perhaps it is," he argued. "I was raised to distance myself emotionally from all things. Perhaps this is beyond me."

"That's bull and you know it," Kagome said sharply. Sesshomaru turned to look at her. "You're just as protective and caring for others as the earth is at times."

Sesshomaru shot her an incredulous look, but Kagome waved it off.

"You _are,_" she insisted. "Just look at Rin. Why, I've seen you save Rin several times when her life was in danger, even bringing her back if it was too late."

Sesshomaru nodded slowly. That was true.

"And even though he's annoying as ever, you care for Jaken too, in your own high-and-mighty way. Maybe he's just a servant to you, but you've grown attached."

Sesshomaru bit his lip. Though he hadn't really thought it through, he _had _brought Jaken back from the land of the dead before. Perhaps, on some level, he did care for the whiny kappa.

"And although you hate to admit it, you care for Inuyasha too. There's been more than a few times where you've saved him, even from Naraku, a demon too powerful for him to beat, or from himself when his demon blood took over."

Sesshomaru nodded shortly. It was true, though he was loathe to admit it.

Kagome turned to look at him, her eyes shining with hope. "Don't you see it, Sesshomaru?" she said pleadingly. "What you feel for all of those, that's what the earth feels for all things. Can't you understand?"

Sesshomaru paused, biting his lip.

"_Try_ to understand, Sesshomaru," she urged. "Just try."

Closing his eyes as they walked along, Rin skipping on ahead of them, Sesshomaru focused on what he knew of himself and the earth.

Though it wasn't his first nature, Sesshomaru _did_ care for some people, as much as he tried to hide it. There was Rin, there was Jaken, and there was Inuyasha and Kagome too, now. He felt vaguely protective over them, and he could understand that the earth felt the same.

Why did the earth care about _everything_, though? That didn't make much sense to him, really. After all, _he_ had perfectly good reasons for caring about those he did...

Wait...

_Did _he?

Thinking hard for a moment, Sesshomaru tried to think of why he cared or not for those he did. Rin, he supposed was because... well... because he had grown somehow attached when she had helped him before. And Jaken... that one was because he had known him for so long as he was his vassal, wasn't it? And Inuyasha would be... well, he really had no way of explaining _that_ one, now, did he? And Kagome...

And as Sesshomaru struggled, mentally trying to account for his emotions, slowly, slowly, the thought crept across his mind that maybe you couldn't _help_ who you started caring for.

Maybe you just _did._

And as that thought started to grow, it started to make sense. Sesshomaru certainly hadn't _intended_ to start caring for anyone other than himself, but somehow, it had happened, and now he couldn't change it.

And maybe, just maybe, it was the same with the earth.

And suddenly, ever so suddenly, Sesshomaru felt his mind being filled with a glowing presence, unlike anything he had felt before. He could not interpret it; he could not put it into words of his own; but suddenly, he _knew_ how the earth felt. It was an indescribable thing, a thing like knowing how to lift one's arm, which, if one had not been born knowing, would surely be difficult to learn. But this had not had to be learned, only _found_, deep inside of him, and he was aware, dimly, that he had found the ability to understand the earth.

It was remarkable.

Kagome had been speaking the truth, he realized. Such a feeling couldn't be put into words or taught, only found, and she had done her best to guide him toward it. It said a lot about her, that she had had the patience to continue to steer him towards this, despite his lack of aptitude for such a lesson.

Opening his eyes, he looked to Kagome, wanting to put this wordless understanding into words and thank her, but finding none, only to see her scream in horror as she pointed forward in abject fear.

Whirling around, Sesshomaru saw that Rin had skipped ahead of them a bit too far, and that now a huge, primal fox youkai was running towards her, leaping at her, snarling, fully intending on consuming his next meal. Hearing it's snarl, Rin turned around and screamed, too petrified to move as it came forward, jaws wide open, and Sesshomaru felt a moment of terror as the stark thought of a world without Rin flashed through his mind.

Without thinking, Sesshomaru slammed a hand to the ground, and with a deafening rumble, the ground cracked, splitting open beneath his hand, running jaggedly up to underneath the fox youkai, the earth yawning open underneath it into a deep chasm, sending it hurtling downwards into the earth as it screamed, falling, falling, before the ground came together again, sending the loud noise of its shockwaves rolling through the hills.

Sesshomaru stared, dumbstruck, unable to think, the knowledge that he had saved Rin dimly running through the back of his mind.

Shaking, Sesshomaru slowly got to his feet, clutching the arm he had put to the earth, standing there for a long moment, overwhelmed, unable to fully process what had just happened. Rin just stared at him, dumbstruck, as Sesshomaru struggled to grasp the magnitude of what he had just done. Finally, he turned to Kagome, emotion raw and stark in his eyes.

Kagome looked at the place where the chasm had appeared for a long moment before looking up and meeting Sesshomaru's eyes once again, her gaze confirming what he had already known.

She smiled.

"I think you've got it now, Sesshomaru," Kagome said, smiling. "I think you've finally got it."

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I rather liked the ending. :P

So, what did _you_ think? What did you like best? What do you think will happen next? You know how to let me know!

Please, **review!** :)


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** I want to thank all of you who took the time to individually send me reviews and emails asking me to continue. It means a lot to know that some people actually care and are affected by my writing. Thank you.

I'll finish this story. I will. I have the entire thing planned out, and it'll be fun. I won't disappoint.

**Elements**

**Chapter 10**

Jaken watched carefully, paying close attention as the girl carefully picked a flower, holding it tightly and concentrating. Incredibly, the flower began to sprout and grow, getting longer, its stem curling and thickening. Other blossoms bloomed along the stalk, their stems winding and weaving around it, forming a thick, flowery wreath as Rin fused both the ends of flower brocade together.

Jaken looked up at Sesshomaru carefully, his face expressionless.

"And this is what the miko has taught you to do, m'lord?" he asked, his tone completely neutral. "She taught you how to play with... _flowers_?"

Rin giggled, draping the wreath around Jaken's neck, who struggled in dismay, snapping at her to remove it, while Sesshomaru pinched the bridge of his nose tightly.

_How_ had it come to this?

Granted, he had known when Kagome had told him that manipulating the earth's energy wouldn't always be so easy, that it would be a challenge to fully master the elusive element, but he hadn't known it would be like _this._

After the initial surge of power he had used to save Rin, Sesshomaru now found that the supply of energy for his use had dwindled to a mere trickle, the promise and taunt of more tickling at his senses whenever he tried to use it. Kagome has said that the earth wasn't about to just let anyone use its power so wildly without a good reason. The earth had to spoken to, convinced, its trust gained before its power could be constantly freely used.

However, since Sesshomaru's main desire for this energy was so he could channel it into his youki to make him more powerful than ever, perhaps powerful enough to be able to destroy an entire village with one whip of his lash, Sesshomaru and the earth were hardly getting along.

Sesshomaru scowled at the fire, poking at it moodily with a stick in a rare show of aggravation.

Mastering the earth would take time and patience, and he was not a patient man.

Lifting his eyes from the fire, he turned to Jaken.

"There is more to the earth that making flower wreaths, Jaken," he informed him. "You can channel its energy, manipulate its growths, and even control the very ground you walk on, should you so desire."

"Indeed, m'lord." Jaken's eyebrows rose. "And the reason my lord did not choose to display _these_ new abilities in place of flower-making as a suitable demonstration is because...?"

Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed. "Perhaps this Sesshomaru did not wish to weaken himself for a superfluous demonstration for your pitiful sake, Jaken," he said curtly. "You would do well to remember your place."

Instantly, the kappa fell upon its knees, realizing its insubordination and apologizing, while Sesshomaru subtly tried to use his newfound powers to coax the weeds behind the kappa to grow and reach over and strangle the noisy frog, of course, to no effect.

Sesshomaru turned away from the prostrate youkai to look at Rin, who was happily making some flowers braid themselves into her hair, before picking another flower, concentrating on making another wreath.

Idly picking a flower of his own, a wreath instantly forming in his hands, Sesshomaru looked at it flatly, before turning back to Rin, who was working on her fourth.

Stupid earth. Only thing it was really good for, anyway.

Rin seemed to sense his gaze and looked over at him to smile cheerfully.

"Isn't this fun, Sesshomaru-sama?" she grinned. "We owe Kagome-sama many thanks for teaching us this!"

"Kagome-_sama_?" Jaken squawked in dismay, though Sesshomaru turned away, looking off into the distance, regarding the sunset with dispassionate eyes.

"Tomorrow Kagome and her pack will return to their shard hunt," he said aloud. "The hanyou's ill effects will have reverted by then, and there will be no further reason for them to delay any longer.

Jaken looked over, curious, though ignoring the curious mention of the hanyou.

"Will we be following them once again, m'lord?" he asked dutifully. Sesshomaru nodded.

"We will follow them until Kagome and I have completed our exchange," he told him. "After that, we will continue our search for Naraku."

"_Continue?_" Jaken asked, alarmed. "Pardon me, my lord, but I thought we were following Kagome and her pack in order to _find_ Naraku."

Sesshomaru paused. "That, too," he conceded. "But the miko and I have made a bargain, and I intend to follow her until it is complete. So far, I have only learned one element, and barely at that. She is to teach me all four."

"Teach you all four?" Jaken repeated. "Forgive your lowly servant for asking, m'lord, but why has she only taught you one?"

Sesshomaru's eyes hardened. "The baka onna refuses to teach me another until I have gained better skill over the first."

"She has only taught you one that you cannot adequately use?" Jaken summarized. Sesshomaru turned to shoot him a glare, before deciding against it, clenching his claws moodily. What was the point? It was true, anyways.

"_Apparently,_ there is more to this process than merely _understanding_ it," Sesshomaru said curtly. "This Sesshomaru is limited in his use of it until he can speak to the miko about it."

"My lord is going to ask the ningen about this?" Jaken said, his incredulousness staining his voice. "My lord, pardon your humble servant, but aren't you expecting an awful lot from this one woman? She is only human, while you are an all-powerful taiyoukai lord. Surely you can find some better way to achieve your goal than continually depending on this one girl..."

Sesshomaru scowled. It was true, he thought with disgust, a vein pulsing in his temple. He _had _come to depend on the girl for an awful lot, even though he had known her for that long. Such a thing was unhealthy, relying on someone besides himself for so much, let alone a _human woman._

Clearly, something was wrong. Sesshomaru _never_ developed attachments or needs for people, and he _never_ gave anyone his help, let alone freely offer it. Yet, here he was, bound to an exchange with a woman to teach him mystics and powers, while he would teach her control in return.

Sesshomaru scowled at himself angrily. He was growing _entirely_ too soft these days.

"This Sesshomaru depends on _nothing_ from **_anyone_**," he said sharply. "This Sesshomaru only asks the miko when he absolutely has to, and even then, he is loathe to do so."

Jaken shrank back, cowering, while Rin looked over at him thoughtfully.

"Sesshomaru-sama, you don't want to ask Kagome-sama for help?" she asked innocently.

A vein pulsed in his temple. "_No._"

"Then why don't you just ask the earth, then?" she said simply. "I'm sure it'll help you, if you ask."

Sesshomaru turned to stare at her.

"Ask the _earth?_"

"Sure," Rin shrugged. "It'll be willing to help you, and then you can figure it out on your own."

Sesshomaru paused, considering.

Asking the earth... would that even be _possible?_

Perhaps the earth _could _communicate, he supposed, if it deigned to, in the wordless sort of way he had experienced before. It might respond if he asked it, especially if he showed an interest in it, but then again, it might not.

Well, he supposed, mentally sighing; there was only one way to find out.

Mentally reaching out to the slightly shifty presence that he had felt appear and lurk in his mind, Sesshomaru wordlessly extended his own energy to it, focusing on keeping in mind his request.

A feeling of golden liquid flooded his hand, and Sesshomaru opened his eyes uncertainly, examining, before tentatively putting his palm to the ground.

A hole opened up in the ground beneath it, the size of a small youkai's burrow, before the walls closed again, perfectly controlled by his will.

Sesshomaru smirked to himself. He was making progress already.

¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°°º¤¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸

"Kagome! Kagome! I'm hungry!"

The miko sighed, looking down at the little fox kit, her eyes patient.

"We're all hungry, Shippo," she said gently. "But first we have to set up camp."

Shippo looked dejected, before perking up and scampering off to go find some firewood. Kagome watched him go, reflective.

When she had returned late that morning, InuYasha had been in a fit, stomping and storming about the camp, yelling that she couldn't just wander off like that, that they were on an important hunt for Naraku and that nothing, **nothing** should ever come in front of that.

Kagome had bitten her tongue to refrain from making a smart remark about his own sudden departures to see Kikyo, instead pointing out that his human-tinged appendages had yet to fully revert back, making travel in this condition an unwise idea. InuYasha had just 'keh'ed and rushed them all off on one of the strangest journeys they had even taken.

InuYasha had attempted to keep them at their normal, grueling pace, only to periodically tire out suddenly, panting for a minute or two before hurrying off again in an entirely different direction. The pace was jerky, abrupt, and highly tiring, especially after about ten or so such stops, and no one dared to comment that InuYasha's sense of smell was clearly not helping them to find Naraku in any way. However, at long last, the irate hanyou had given in to exhaustion, literally falling over unconscious and collapsing in the middle of a clearing. The others had quickly taken advantage of the opportunity and immediately began to set up camp for the night, hurrying to finish before InuYasha woke up once more.

It was quieter, calmer, and more subdued than it would have been, had InuYasha been awake, and Kagome relished the silence.

"Kagome!! I'm _hungry_!!"

Well, _more_ quiet, at any rate.

Sighing, Kagome turned to the young kitsune resignedly.

"Put the sticks and kindling in a circle in a spot without any grass," she instructed, exactly as she had done a million times before. "Then, go get a bucket of water, in case the fire gets out of control."

Shippo nodded solemnly, before dumping his twiggy mess into a heap and running for the nearby stream. Kagome sighed, crouching down to arrange the mess into an acceptable pile. Her mind wandered as she shaped it, drifting back to a certain taiyoukai lord.

Some unknown emotion within her surged and abruptly the kindling caught fire, as if her hand had been a spark. Kagome hurriedly pulled back, cradling her hand in disbelief as the flames crackled merrily, much stronger than they should have been.

Kagome snorted to herself. Fire was the element of raw emotion, that which could not yet be explained or put into words. And while she knew she felt _something_ odd for the taiyoukai lord, she _hadn't_ expected it to be so strong to escape her control.

"Kagome-sama?"

Kagome turned to see Miroku looking at her curiously, his conversation with Sango paused.

"Is everything alright, Kagome-sama?" he asked, his eyebrows raised. "The fire seemed to suddenly surge out of control. Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," Kagome said quickly. She held out her hand. "See? Not burned."

Miroku looked strongly as if he didn't believe her, but after a moment, he let it pass.

"If you're sure," he said, turning back and resuming his conversation with Sango once again.

Moving quickly to keep her mind busy, Kagome rummaged in her bag to find her cooking things, casting a glance at InuYasha. He was still asleep from exhaustion, showing no signs of waking up anytime soon. Biting her lip and praying he wouldn't, she got out some rice and spices, opting for a more filling meal than the ramen InuYasha always insisted on.

Waiting for Shippo to return with the water, Kagome looked down at her hands, sighing. How was it that things had spiraled out of her control so fast? She'd thought that forming a friendship with Sesshomaru would be a good idea, giving her someone outside of her own little group to talk to when she needed to sort some things out. Now, however, Sesshomaru's involvement was making things more complicated than ever, and she had only herself to blame.

What _was_ it with the taiyoukai lord that got to her so? He was arrogant, assuming, and aloof, as if he was the best thing in the world since cultured rice. He was cold and curt, insulting at the best of times, invective at his worst, and it was all too plain to see why he didn't have many (if any) friends.

Yet, Kagome's mind whispered traitorously, there seemed to be more to him then that. He treated her as an equal now, despite her humanity, and he'd only tried to kill her the once, where she proved her power to him. And then he had gone to her that night, her power spinning out of her control, and tried to help her...

Kagome shook her head violently, focusing on the fire once more. These puzzling thoughts were getting her nowhere, and it was better if she didn't think of them.

But still...

Casting a long look at the fire, Kagome sighed, mentally dredging up the image of the taiyoukai lord once again, the unfamiliar emotion coming forth once more.

Carefully, ever so slowly, Kagome reached out her hand to the fire, before thrusting it directly into the center, letting the flames lick at her hand.

There was no pain; just a slight, tickling feeling, as the fire burned around her hand. Trickles of flame danced up and around her hand, creeping up her wrist and curling around her palm, and Kagome could feel the heat from the fire against her face.

She held it there for a long time, just watching the fire blaze against her hand, before slowly pulling it out and examining it for damage.

There was nothing. Not even the slightest burn.

Kagome bit her lip, contemplative, before moving to ready the rice, determinedly turning her thoughts from the implications of her act. Still, she couldn't help but think...

Everything had gotten a lot more complicated than she'd thought.

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So, love it? Hate it? Too short? I doubt it was too long...

Please, leave me your thoughts in a review! I read and cherish every one. Please, **review!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** I said I would finish this story, and I will. It'll just take time. Thank you for being so patient with me!

**Elements**

**Chapter 11**

The next day, Sesshomaru awoke to an odd prickling in the back of his mind.

At first, he tried to ignore it. It was still incredibly early, with the weather chill and the cold, and anyone with any sense of sanity would still be asleep. The feeling continued to niggle at him, however, and, finally, Sesshomaru sat up, more than slightly annoyed at being roused from his sleep, to look around and locate the source of the problem.

It was before dawn and misty out, the time where dew settled upon the leaves, and the air was thick with moisture. He glanced around, before his eyes settled on a vaguely familiar figure standing on a hill a ways away, appearing more to be a shadow than a person against the gray sky. Sesshomaru squinted, the fog making it hard to see, trying to puzzle out who it was to his still dormant mind.

Suddenly, a shield was dropped, and a familiar powerful presence immediately assaulted Sesshomaru's mind, a scent catching on the wind. The shield was immediately replaced mere moments later, but it had been enough for him to recognize the figure a top the hill.

_Kagome..._

What was she doing here?

Sesshomaru had practiced his skill over the earth long into the evening, fueled by his determination to prove he didn't need Kagome to help him at all. He'd mastered growing things, opening it up, and even shaking it to a degree, managing to create small earthquakes and tremors in the ground below. He'd eventually stopped late in the night, succumbing to exhaustion, figuring he'd continue practicing in the morning.

It appeared, however, that his efforts had been noticed.

His eyes narrowing, Sesshomaru forced himself not to react as a tendril of wind wrapped around him, chilling him, touching his face. It was almost ghost-like in the way it moved, curling around him as opposed to blowing past him with the rest of the breeze. He watched as the figure on the hill made a gesture, and another tendril of air joined the first in flitting around him, forcing his attention to focus on them, before darting away.

Phantom air? Sesshomaru was far from stupid, and he knew that air didn't move around on its own or focus on anyone in paticular. Little ghostly breezes, a quiet way to get someone's notice without waking others up, an open display of control over the atmosphere, made to arouse his curiosity.

Sesshomaru smirked.

It appeared it was time for another lesson to be learned.

Getting up, Sesshomaru moved off his pelt, wrapping it around him and over his shoulder instead. Opting to leave his armor off, he glided over silently to the girl, the dark green of a skirt and midnight black of her hair coming into view. She turned to look at him, shivering slightly in the cold, undoubtedly sensing his approach.

"S-Sesshomaru."

"Kagome."

Sesshomaru watched as she shivered, her arms wrapped around herself. It was puzzling, Sesshomaru reflected, wondering why the girl would come out here when she was obviously so cold, but then she spoke, and he pushed the matter out of his mind.

"InuYasha was in a foul mood yesterday," she said quietly, still holding her arms in the cold. "He was mad because I came back so late. I figured if we started earlier today, I'd be able to get back in time before he noticed."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. Kagome was being quiet, much more docile than usual, and Sesshomaru found himself wondering at her submissiveness. Only recently, she'd been raging at InuYasha, possessing and forcing her own will upon others, but now she was so quiet, as if afraid to attract anyone's notice.

The irony bit at him. He'd worked so diligently the previous day to prove to her that he didn't need her help, to justify himself over her, and today she was being so docile that an infant fish youkai could have overcome her.

It completely took the triumph out of his victory.

Kagome blew on her hands, rubbing them together violently, obviously cold. Looking at her, his amber eyes holding her blue, Sesshomaru noted the veiled depths to them, seeing something flickering inside of their seas. Something was obviously plaguing her mind, occupying her mind, keeping her quiet.

Sesshomaru was surprised to note he missed her playful bantering, her teasing. A Quiet Kagome was a new one for him to meet, and one he didn't care for much.

"I figured we could do air today," she said, shivering slightly as she hugged herself, stamping her feet, rubbing her legs to keep warm. "It's too misty out to do fire, and there's no real springs or water around, so air was only logical..."

"Air would be fine," Sesshomaru found himself interrupting, off-put by her justification of her reasons to him. She'd never bothered justifying herself to him before. Something must really be off.

Kagome nodded and shivered, before pulling a feather from behind her ear. "A-a trick I took off Kagura," she said, dropping it, watching it grow. "I'll take us up on it, using the wind, and then teach you, and we'll float around until you can control the wind e-enough to take us where we want to go."

She moved to step onto the feather, but Sesshomaru found his hand darting out, catching her arm. She turned quickly, her eyes looking to his, confused, and Sesshomaru nearly cursed himself for such an open display.

"...here."

Pulling his pelt from his shoulder, he wrapped it around her, letting the soft fur envelop her with the warmth from his body, using it as a blanket. Kagome flushed as he guided her down onto the feather, making sure the pelt kept her firmly encased in its heat. Her cheeks coloring prettily, she looked up at him as he sat down as well, facing her, and a small smile touched her lips, some of her sparkle returning to her eyes.

"...thanks."

And suddenly, Sesshomaru didn't feel the cold at all.

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In science class, Kagome had learned many things. She'd learned the parts of a flower, what made chemical bonds, how the human body worked, and that heat rose because of its structure.

As she shivered more and more violently as they ascended even further, the temperature dropping noticeably, Kagome wondered what else she'd been lied to about.

Steering the feather higher, Kagome wondered why she was even out here at this ungodly hour doing this. She felt like crap; what was the point in flying around in the chill air besides making her feel even more crummy?

Abruptly, Kagome realized she was wallowing in self-pity. She'd get nothing done just sitting there, moping. Annoyed with herself at her lack of action, she decided that she wouldn't freeze in the cold any longer.

InuYasha had been positively evil upon waking to the smell of something that distinctly was _not_ ramen, she reflected. He'd lashed out, berating her for being ignorant and not knowing anything and not doing what she was told. A simple "sit" command had curtailed the worst of his rage, but his words still managed to get to her. He was supposed to be her friend, and she was only trying to be nice, really, by making sure they all ate a balanced diet, but _no_, he didn't _care_, he just wanted his stupid noodles and wanted to yell and scream and make everyone feel like utter _shit _no matter what.

Her ire rising, Kagome felt her eyes narrow, annoyed. Who did he think he was, anyway? Yelling about everything and nothing and her "unnatural obsession with his brother". What was so wrong if she enjoyed spending time with Sesshomaru? He was certainly more interesting and kinder than _him_, at any rate. And what did it matter if she had no idea why their friendship had suddenly grown so much so quickly? It wasn't as if it were a _bad_ thing.

Reflecting on this, Kagome tilted her head and watched Sesshomaru, who was looking out into the cloudy mist stoically, apparently deep in thought. He looked much more approachable without his armor, and the absence of his pelt made him seem almost... well, almost normal. Like someone she could talk to, someone she could be friends with, someone she could hug and laugh with and do more-

A sudden flare ignited at Kagome's fingertips, and she yelped, more from surprise than anything else.

Sesshomaru whirled around, his eyes widening, quickly moving to put the fire out, but Kagome held it back from him quickly, well aware he was about to extinguish her only way to get warm. He looked at her incredulously, and Kagome found her face flaming.

"It doesn't hurt," she told him, bringing it forward, so he could see the fire crackling in her palm. "I made it. It's to get warm. I'm fine."

Sesshomaru gave her a look. "If you made it," he said flatly, "then why did you shriek?"

Kagome made a face. "I didn't shriek," she informed him. "I made a slight noise of surprise. I hadn't thought the flame would flare quite that much."

The taiyoukai raised an eyebrow. "What made it flare, then?" he asked, his tone curt, disbelieving. Kagome rolled her eyes. Couldn't he just admit he was curious?

"The emotions and feelings associated with fire are those that are raw, those not fully understood," she explained. "Anger, hatred, things you can't recognize, the like. When I started thinking along lines to purposely create the fire, I hadn't expected that much of an emotional output."

Sesshomaru just looked at her. Kagome flushed slightly, wondering if he could read her mind and tell exactly what it was that had caused her emotions to flare out of control, before he smirked.

"I thought you were teaching me air today," he remarked, and Kagome couldn't help but smile a bit at the teasing comment.

"You're just jealous," she assured him, before setting the fire down (carefully) on the feather, making sure to keep a rein on it in the back of her mind. Steering the feather up a bit more, coaxing the wind, she let them coast along at a steady pace for a while before turning to look at Sesshomaru.

"Air," Kagome began, "is the element of determination. It's the element of courage, the element of persistence, the element of power. Everything you can get from sheer determination, air is."

"That's likely why it's your dominant element," she reflected, partially to herself. "Your determination to be the best, to overcome every foe, to master every power you can... you're practically living the air's philosophy yourself."

"I fail to see how the air is determined," Sesshomaru commented, his arms folded. "The air seems rather weak for something meant to represent such unwavering persistence."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "Have you ever seen a tornado?" she asked. "Or a hurricane? Or the damage from a windstorm? The air may be relatively low-key, but when it decides it wants to do something, it gets it done flat-out."

Sesshomaru appeared to reflect for a moment before nodding once, slowly, and Kagome rolled her eyes to herself.

"Okay," she said. "Here's what we're going to do. I'm going to drop my control of the feather so we're free-falling down. You're going to try to seize control of the air around the feather and stop us so we don't crash to the ground and die."

Sesshomaru looked at her sharply, incredulous, and Kagome couldn't restrain a giggle. "We won't die, of course," she assured him. "If you can't get it in time, I'll retake control and steer us back up to try again. The free-falling is just so you feel the abject panic of hurtling towards the ground and the sheer determination and courage it'll take to control the air and force us back up."

Sesshomaru looked like he was wondering why he had ever bothered to get out of bed that morning, and Kagome had to restrain another giggle.

"Okay," she said. "Let's go."

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Sesshomaru did not like many things. Naraku, his father, humans in general, having to put up with foolish vassals, fleas, the uncanny urge to kill InuYasha whenever he made Kagome mad, and natto. His list was relatively stable; if he didn't like something once, he didn't like it ever, so there were few changes to his mental list over the years.

Now, however...

Sesshomaru was fast considering adding impulsive mikos and heights to his list.

"Come _on,_ Sesshomaru!" Kagome yelled, her voice barely heard over the wind rushing past them. "Get control! Make it stop!"

"I'm _trying!!_" he snapped back, his stoic control long since vanished with the feeling of plunging down headlong towards the earth. Reaching out mentally, grasping at anything he could, searching for the wordless understanding that had come with the earth, Sesshomaru frantically tried to fine a wind or something he could talk to, get to stop the feather, his efforts becoming more and more jagged as they fell faster and faster.

They were going to die. Sesshomaru was sure of it, he could see the ground below them, they'd left the clouds, they were going to hit the ground and their skulls would fly through their feet with the force of their impact, leaving brains splattered on the forest floor...

"That's enough."

Abruptly, the feather stopped falling, catching a soft wind that curled it in a long arc, spreading out the force of their fall, before coasting back up into the heights of the atmosphere once more. Sesshomaru shot a sharp look at Kagome, who was looking at him with a tired smile on her face.

"I was about to get it."

"I'm sure you were," she said easily, her eyes dancing. "Because you weren't panicking at all. Because Sesshomaru never panics. Ever."

Sesshomaru gave her a curt glare. "There is a distinct difference between a healthy amount of fear and pure panic," he informed her.

"Yeah," Kagome agreed, hiding a laugh. "And you were panicking."

Exasperated, Sesshomaru opened his mouth to retort, only to be cut off by Kagome.

"C'mon, Sesshomaru," she said, her tone somewhat pleading. "You've manipulated the air before, through your youki. It basically the same thing, only now it's direct. It's the same in essence. Why can't you get it now?"

Her eyes were looking at him earnestly, some part of him dimly noticed. Blue orbs shining at him, so hopeful, and Sesshomaru found himself unable to describe how the thought of her crashing to the ground turned any concentration or determination he had to sheer panic.

"I'm trying," he growled, and Kagome, to his dismay, laughed.

"I can tell," she teased. "But you need to try harder, Sesshomaru, if you're ever to master this. It's not even an emotion that should be too hard for you to express."

Without so much as a warning, Kagome abruptly dropped the feather again, and Sesshomaru felt the air screaming in his ears as it flashed by, his thoughts abruptly fleeing his mind as they hurtled toward the ground.

_Determination,_ he told himself sharply, deliberately _not_ looking at Kagome. _Determination determination determination I will stop this stupid feather I will I will I will-_

Kagome's hair was flying in the air, making her look like a banshee, and tears were streaming form her eyes just from the force of the air rushing past her. She looked dead, she looked like a ghost, she looked like she'd already crashed to the ground-

"Come _on,_ Sesshomaru. I know you can get this."

The feather stopped again abruptly, coasting in an arc as it ascended again, and Sesshomaru glared at Kagome, his eyes narrowed.

"You didn't warn me that time," he said curtly, and Kagome shrugged.

"I thought maybe if you didn't know what was coming you'd just react and not have time to think and process it through so much," she said, uncaring. "Now, come on. We're going to try it again-"

"I _am_ trying," Sesshomaru said nastily, trying not to let his frustration seep into his voice. Kagome frowned.

"Now, that's no good," she said. "Frustration leads to exasperation which leads to giving up, which is _not _anything close to the emotion we're looking for. Shall we take a slight break?"

Sesshomaru gave her a look, and Kagome smiled a bit.

"Okay," she said. "Break then."

Reassured that Kagome wasn't going to abruptly drop the stupid feather again, Sesshomaru stood and stretched carefully, feeling as though he'd shrunk an entire foot from the downward force on his spine. Sighing as he felt his joints pop back into place, he turned to look at Kagome who was watching him, playing with the fire absently. He raised an eyebrow.

"You're staring at me."

Kagome flushed slightly. "Forgive me if you're more interesting to look at than the clouds," she said, her cheeks tinged. "I forgot I'm supposed to ask permission before doing that sort of thing."

Sesshomaru ignored her sarcasm, sitting back down. "What did you mean by your previous remark?" he asked, folding his legs. "The one about my emotions."

"Oh." Kagome shrugged. "It's just that you rarely show any emotion at all, so it's understandable if this sort of thing is hard for you. It's just that the determination for the air shouldn't be such a challenge-"

"Emotions make you weak," Sesshomaru cut her off. "Emotions make you weak and lose your head or they-"

"Or they can make you stronger," Kagome said calmly. "Look what your emotions did you protect Rin the other day. I wouldn't call that weak, you know."

Sesshomaru scowled. He'd _felt_ weak at feeling that terror, even if he hadn't been.

"Think of it as a challenge," Kagome said, twirling a piece of her hair idly. "You have the exact opposite problem of me. My issue is that I feel too much and get too powerful, making everything spin out of control, where your problem is you can't feel enough, can't let go of enough of your control."

"I was trained to keep every emotion I had under constant control, if I even so much as felt them," Sesshomaru informed her. "You're asking someone who's lived in a dungeon their entire life to unlock one door as if that will make everything better again."

"Don't get so depressing, Sesshomaru," Kagome chided. "You did it before with the earth. Perhaps you just need the right stimulus, like with Rin. Or maybe you just need to find one emotion to feel right now before unlocking all the other ones."

"Feel an emotion?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Like what?"

"Oh, I don't know." Kagome cocked her head, tilting it, looking at him. "Can't you feel anything now? Even in the slightest? Annoyance at the cold, wonderment at the fire, anything?"

Sesshomaru sighed, glancing at the fire, trying to find an emotion deep inside of him he could stir up. The fire, however incredible, was still just a fire. It wasn't anything to be in complete awe of.

Though, then again...

The fire had been burning for quite some time, Sesshomaru noted, all without consuming any fuel. A fire always needed fuel to burn off of, wood or the like, but this one had none. That meant...

Well, that meant that Kagome had to be sustaining it. With whatever emotion or power had let her start it in the first place.

Glancing up at her, Sesshomaru wondered. He'd thought that her anger at InuYasha had been the emotion raw enough to start the flame, but surely her anger couldn't have lasted this long. Kagome was much too low-key to hold onto a grudge for so long, especially when the source wasn't around.

Was she angry at him, then? No, that didn't make sense. If she was, she'd be biting his head off with curt, sarcastic comments and rolling her eyes and huffing all over the place. Plus, he had a feeling that a fire fueled by that would be a lot larger, more brilliant and angry than a small steady glow from a constant source.

Kagome turned slightly to look at him, and Sesshomaru found his eyes meeting hers, amber touching blue. Her eyes widened slightly but remained on his, and Sesshomaru found he couldn't look away.

There was something in her eyes, he saw; something hidden and misunderstood and longing and powerful that she didn't want to admit. It was veiled, covered, feared, and Kagome's cheeks were colored, as if in denial or embarrassment at such a thing. Sesshomaru inexplicably found himself reaching for her, as if to cup her face and wordlessly reassure her that it was all right to feel such a thing.

Her eyes widening sharply and sucking in her breath, Kagome's face flamed, looking at him in disbelief, unsure, waiting, nervous and anticipatory. Sesshomaru found himself moving closer, unsure himself of what was going on, dimly aware that something akin to nervousness was flitting about his veins as well as he leaned in. And then, suddenly,

The fire went out of control.

Sesshomaru yelled as he felt fire burn his legs, breaking the spell, and he saw Kagome instantly become aware of what was happening, yelling at him to get away, that she'd try to control it. Quickly moving behind her on the feather, stamping out his singed pants, Sesshomaru watched as Kagome winced, trying to control the fire, only to watch in horror as the feather burned away, the fire too far gone for her to rein it in.

Sesshomaru and Kagome looked at each other, a single look passing the knowledge between them of what had just happened.

And then they began to fall.

"Stop us!!" Sesshomaru yelled at Kagome as they plunged towards the ground. "Use the air! Make us stop!!"

"I'm trying!!" Kagome yelled back, wringing her head as she fell headfirst. "I'm trying, but the fire's still getting to me! It's hard!!"

Growling, Sesshomaru despaired for a moment that it was utterly ridiculous to only be able to control one element at a time at such a moment before yelling at Kagome to hurry up and let go of the fire already and save their lives.

"I'm trying!!" Kagome said frantically, and she looked near tears. "It doesn't work that way, though! I can't just suddenly stop feeling one thing and switch over to another, Sesshomaru!"

"This is insane!" Sesshomaru fumed, his anger escaping his control for a moment. "You took us up that high even though you might not have been able to have complete control??"

"I'm sorry!" Kagome cried, her voice next to a wail in the wind. "I didn't _know_ other things were going to fly out of control! I'm _sorry!_"

Recalling that Kagome's fire had spiraled out of control at his provocation, something akin to guilt settled down on his shoulders. It wasn't her fault she'd lost control; it was his for pushing her in such a precarious situation in the first place.

Kagome was crying, Sesshomaru noted, and he felt an odd calm descend upon him. Kagome was convinced she was going to die, and that it was entirely her fault, when the blame actually lay with him. She was going to die hating herself, unforgiving, and Sesshomaru knew he couldn't let that happen. He just couldn't.

Something touched his mind, whispering, and Sesshomaru abruptly seized it, spinning it around, as if it were a wide cord. The wind suddenly rushed up to meet them, breaking their velocity, sweeping Kagome up against him, where he quickly righted her and held her in his arms. Kagome gaped at him, her mouth open in astonishment, but Sesshomaru was too busy controlling the wind, careful to taper off their speed horizontally, bringing them coasting back down to the ground in a gentle arc, the wind beneath their feet feeling like a floor.

There was a slight bump as they landed, his feet once again on hard ground, and Sesshomaru looked down at Kagome, who was looking up at him with wide eyes, her mouth agape, stunned at what he'd just done.

"I think we need to work on your control," he told her, gently shutting her mouth with a finger. Kagome blinked, swallowed hard, and nodded.

It appeared that he would be the teacher next time.

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Read it? Please, review! Reviews encourage the author like nothing else, further motivating them to writing more. Please, review, and leave me your thoughts! It's always greatly appreciated! Please, review!


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** It's been a long, _long _time between updates. Which isn't a surprise to me, really: summer is a time of laziness and sloth. I'm in school again, now, however. We'll see if this makes me write more.

Filler chapter, I know; probably a disappointment with such a long wait, though a necessary evil. Please, leave a review at the end!

**Elements**

**Chapter 12**

"And just _where_ were you?"

Kagome glanced up upon returning to the campsite at the sound of a curt voice to see a rather familiar figure standing tall, arms folded crossly, a scowl on his face. She sighed.

"I went for a walk," she said simply, moving to pack her things as Sango and Miroku watched on, almost in pity.

InuYasha was in a mood. Finally fully healed from the slight purification, he was back to his full power, baring his fangs menacingly, his silver hair falling down his back. His eyes were flashing, and his posture spoke of barely-restrained anger, making him almost quake where he stood. Kagome was reminded of the time she had snuck out of the house to meet Eri and Yumi to go see a concert and come home to find her mother at the door.

Only Kagome had a feeling that dealing with InuYasha would be much worse than dealing with her mother ever was.

"_Where_ were you??" InuYasha demanded. "You weren't walking anywhere around _here_, and a human like you couldn't have gone off that far!"

"Just around, InuYasha!" Kagome said, someway irritated as she tugged at a zipper, trying to shut her crammed backpack without breaking it. "What's it matter?"

"Why couldn't I find you??" InuYasha's eyes flashed, his voice growing more and more intense. "Why couldn't I follow your scent?"

"I masked my scent," she said flatly, rolling her eyes, and Sango hid a snicker.

"Keh! Humans can't mask their scents," he said dismissively. He paused for a moment, his eyes narrowing. "You weren't _with _anyone, were you?"

Kagome hesitated, and InuYasha yelped, her pause giving her away.

"You _were_ with someone!" he accused. "Admit it! You were! Who were you with?! Was it Sesshomaru?!"

"Who else would it be?" Kagome muttered, exasperated.

"I knew it!" InuYasha yelled, his ears twitching wildly. "You were off training with him in secret!"

"I had to keep it secret!" she snapped, her nerves fraying. "I knew if I told you you'd stomp and yell and pitch a fit much like you are now!"

"I am _not _pitching a fit!" InuYasha stomped his foot, his hands on his hips, furious. "My god, Kagome! You're hanging out with an evil demon lord and then getting upset when I worry for you!"

"That 'evil demon lord' happens to be my _friend_," Kagome said nastily. "And you don't _need_ to worry about me. I can take care of myself."

"Oh, _sure_ you can," InuYasha scoffed. "Just like you took care of yourself the times you were kidnapped by Urasue and Tsubaki!"

"If I might interject, InuYasha," Miroku broke in politely, "but all of those happened a very long time ago. More recently, Kagome-sama has fended off-"

"Shut up, monk!" InuYasha snapped, livid. Kagome's eyes flashed.

"Can't bear to hear the truth, InuYasha?" she said coldly. "I can watch out for myself now. I don't know why you keep clinging to me when I don't need it, but it'd be a lot better for everyone if you'd just _cut it out!_"

InuYasha looked struck for a moment, before he sneered at her, his eyes cruel.

"Yeah," he said nastily. "I'm sure you'd much rather do the clinging to _Sesshomaru._"

"**SIT!"**

InuYasha crashed to the ground, and Kagome clenched her fists, her face tight with restraint, her nails digging into her palms. She took a deep, shuddering breath, before turning to the others and offering them a weak smile.

"We're leaving as soon as he gets up." She gestured to the hanyou, determinedly not looking at him. "Get your things."

Miroku and Sango quickly finished packing up, Shippo scurrying around as InuYasha got up, crouching near the ground, his face scowling, glaring at Kagome, who was busy watching the others, overseeing their cleanup.

"Did you see that?" Shippo hissed to Miroku. "_Flames _came up when InuYasha hit the ground! It was only for a second, but I saw it! I know I saw it! Did you see it too??"

"Yes, Shippo," he said quietly, watching Kagome from under his eyes. "I did see the fire. We would do well to be cautious around Kagome when she is mad."

"We're leaving. Now."

Both monk and child looked up to see the miko in question snapping at the hanyou on the ground who scowled but rose, his arms folded, grimace firmly in place.

"You guys hear that?" he said shortly, slinging Kagome's pack over his back. "We're leaving. Quit your chatter."

Miroku and Shippo exchanged a glance before rising and falling in line with Sango as they lift the campsite. All of their eyes rested warily on the backs of the angry miko and scowling hanyou, silently hoping that the dam of tension between them wouldn't burst.

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"Kagome-sama is maaad" Rin sang, dancing around Sesshomaru as the three walked on "Kagome-sama got mad at the baka inu"

"Cease your childish wailing!" Jaken squawked, banging his staff. "Sesshomaru-sama does not care about the silly girl! Nor does he appreciate your noisiness!"

"Jaken-sama is just mad that he can't tell Kagome-sama is mad like Rin and Sesshomaru-sama can," Rin teased the kappa. "Jaken-sama is not special enough"

Sesshomaru sighed, tuning out the senseless squabble behind him. Though obnoxious, Rin had a point: the miko was mad. He'd been able to sense it. The wind had shifted and the earth had moved restlessly as he heard a distant yell of her voice. It was almost disconcerting, really, how the earth and air reacted to her fury without her so much as acknowledging them when he had to work so hard to control both elements on his own. Just another testament to her power, he supposed.

"Why is Kagome-sama so angry?" Rin asked, looking up at Sesshomaru curiously, cutting into his thoughts. "Did the inu-baka make her mad again? I thought they just fought the other day. Shouldn't they wait longer before fighting again?"

Sesshomaru hid a smirk. "InuYasha hardly has the sense to do so," he informed her.

Rin frowned. "But he keeps making Kagome-sama mad," she complained. "I don't like it when Kagome-sama is mad. It changes things."

This, too, had truth in it, Sesshomaru recognized as they walked along. It was odd, really. When Kagome was upset, the world seemed distorted, out of sorts. The two mindless presences that had taken up residence in the back of his mind whispered restlessly, shifting, refusing to settle down, almost as if waiting for a storm. The air seemed colder, less giving, and the earth seemed almost as if it would ignite.

But it was more than that.

Knowing Kagome was upset seemed to unsettle something in him, as well as the elements around him. It was almost like he could feel her ire inside his mind, fuming, bothering him and bothering him as long as he knew she wasn't alright.

"Annoying," Sesshomaru murmured, and Rin glanced up at him, amused.

"If Sesshomaru-sama doesn't like the earth being loud, he can try to cheer Kagome-sama up," she said, impish. "If Kagome-sama stops being mad, the earth will stop being loud, too."

"Rin," Sesshomaru said, looking down at her, one eyebrow raised. "We are not traveling with Kagome and her group, only near them. I have no way to communicate with her to settle her fury."

"Would you, though, if you could?" Rin asked, looking up at him. "Sesshomaru-sama and Kagome-sama are friends now, right? Wouldn't you like to help her feel better?"

Sesshomaru looked down at his ward, his lips tight.

"Kagome can deal with her own problems," he told her. "I have enough issues of my own to regard."

"But wouldn't you like her to be happy again?" Rin pressed on. "Kagome-sama probably feels all alone and isolated with just the inu-baka and her anger. If you could, wouldn't you like to help her to feel better? Don't you feel happier when she's happy too?"

As loathe as he was to admit it, she was right.

"...I might," he reluctantly acquiesced. Rin beamed.

"But Sesshomaru-sama _can_ communicate with Kagome-sama!" she said, happily, her eyes sparkling. "All Sesshomaru-sama has to do is ask the earth to be a messenger for him, and it's easy as counting to five!"

Jaken objected indignantly, saying that that was impossible and ridiculous, and Rin retorted calling him a name while Sesshomaru rolled his eyes tuned them out once more.

Use the earth as a messenger system?

How odd.

The earth could provide energy and influence the growth and movement of other earthly things. But how was he supposed to get a message to Kagome through the earth? It wasn't as if he had the skill to carve kanji into a tree a mile away. It was impossible.

Then again...

It wasn't as if Sesshomaru understood everything about the earth and these elements he'd learned about yet. He'd only just begun, having reached a basic understanding with them. Maybe it _was_ possible. Rin certainly seemed to think so, and he doubted that she'd just make something like that up. And the earth _did _like to help with things, didn't it?

Perhaps it was worth a try.

All in the name of furthering his own mastery over the element, of course.

Gently extending his mind back to the green presence in the back of his mind, Sesshomaru tried to communicate his message, trying to get it sent in a ball of energy through the earth. As soon as it went into the earth, though, Sesshomaru could feel it dissipate, losing its form.

Sesshomaru twitched, annoyed. He had to be missing something. If Rin could do it, so could he.

One alternative would be to use his own energy, he mused. He could push his youki into the ground and send it through the earth that way. That, however, was bound to not work; the earth rejected things such as youki and demon energy, so there was no way that would do.

He glanced at Rin, musing. She had most likely used whatever spiritual energy she had in the earth. With her dominant element being of earth, the earth would accept it easily, but it'd retain enough of her own nature to keep it separate from the rest. He, however, had no such spiritual energy, only youki, which he'd already determined wouldn't work.

The earth's presence flared inside his mind as the wind suddenly ran cold, and Sesshomaru could feel an angry presence pulse in front of them. Rin shivered slightly, teeth chattering, and Sesshomaru bit his lip, wondering what the idiot hanyou was doing now.

There _had _to be some way of contacting her, short of catching up with them and just talking. He had all these new abilities at his hands now, didn't he? And he couldn't even figure out how to make them work?

Gritting his teeth as they walked, Sesshomaru pondered, bracing himself against the wind, when the answer suddenly became clear.

If _his_ energy didn't work and he couldn't use the earth's, why not use the air?

It made sense. All the elements had energy – the earth's was just the most readily accessible. And with the earth and air being natural compliments to each other, it only made sense that he'd be able to send a message using the air by way of the earth.

At least, in theory it would.

Concentrating again, this time Sesshomaru reached out to the flighty, cold presence in the back of his mind, grasping it, willing it, pulling it into a ball, trying to give it tangible form. He wove the words _What did the hanyou do now? _into it, making them tangible, and slowly pushed the ball of abstract energy out through his feet into the earth, directing it to go to Kagome.

Almost immediately, he felt the ball take off and flee, skittering through the ground out of his awareness, shooting off in front. Sesshomaru allowed himself a small smile as he relaxed. It seemed that this strategy had worked.

They walked on, and it was a few minutes later when Sesshomaru suddenly felt a strong presence of wind and mist overwhelm him, entering his mind, echoing with Kagome's voice.

_Nothing unusual, just pitching a fit, saying I'm useless and a burden and whatnot. Why do you ask?_

He nearly laughed as the message dissipated. She'd sent him an answer back! He wasn't quite sure what he'd been expecting with her response, but it was certainly fascinating to be able to communicate in a way such as this now.

Summoning his will again, Sesshomaru set about weaving another air ball. _I could tell you were upset_, he pushed. _Things were shifting in the back of my mind, and I could almost taste your ire upon the air._ He paused, considering, before adding _Ignore the hanyou. He's a fool to not realize you for the asset you are to his team._

He sent it off, watching without eyes as it zoomed through the ground, ears deaf to Rin and Jaken's constant bickering. A few long moments passed until he felt something come whizzing back to him, filling his mind once more.

_I just don't get why he cares so much when I go off alone. He has no right. I can take care of myself now; can't he let me go?_

Sesshomaru frowned. It was all too clear why he was always so enraged when she did so. _He doesn't like that you don't need him anymore_, he said reluctantly, feeling more than a little odd for revealing his brother's mindset so easily. _He cares for you and wants you to depend on him, make him feel special. When you don't, it makes him feel neglected and mad. _

The response came quicker this time, Kagome's indignant voice flooding his mind. _That's ridiculous! Who else is going to kill __Naraku__ and beat all the demons into a pulp? I'm certainly not going to, and Miroku and Sango aren't nearly up to his skill with the whole slaying bit. Honestly! What's he __**think**__ we'd do without him?_

_But you don't show that,_ he reminded her wordlessly. _Right now, all he sees is you growing more independent and going off on your own, leaving him behind._

_What's he care?_ came her curt reply, and Sesshomaru sighed.

_Feeling needed is a powerful thing,_ he said carefully, measuring his words. _It's empowering for a man to know someone else depends on him. Not for survival, perhaps, but for happiness and well-being and such. _

Kagome's reply was slower this time, more thought-out. _Needed? I'd never want to feel needed – it'd feel too restrictive, to be needed all the time. I'd rather be appreciated for when I do help out._

_But that makes sense,_ Sesshomaru argued silently. _A man would rather feel needed, while a woman would want to feel cherished. They're different. Look. _Sesshomaru struggled for a moment to think of an example, not wanting to go into detail about the interactions between his father and his mom. _Take Rin and Jaken, for example. For all their arguing, they're still very close. Rin needs Jaken to provide for her and is always grateful when he does, and though he might grumble, he appreciates it and continues to do so in the end. Rin, on the other hand, feels cherished and loved when he goes out of his way to do things for her, like help her find flowers to pick. It's a bit twisted, but it makes sense, and it works._

The earth was quieting down in the back of his mind, as was the wind, and Sesshomaru felt himself slowly relaxing as the tension slowly ebbed out of the world.

Kagome's reply this time was neutral, her voice sounding thoughtful in his mind. _That makes sense... _she murmured. _InuYasha doesn't cherish me anymore; he has __Kikyo.__ And I don't need him for physical or emotional security anymore... not really..._

He felt the end of the message trail off, as if Kagome had lost herself in her own thoughts, and he wisely refrained from replying further, recognizing her need for a bit of space to think.

Another thought bubble came bouncing through the earth a while later. _You're not supposed to be the one with psychology expertise_ she complained. _All you're supposed to know about is demon diplomacy and how to kill things. _

Sesshomaru had to restrain a laugh. _Youkai__ politics are __inseparably__ entwined with how the mind works. How can you predict your opponent's move without knowing how he thinks?_

_You. Shut up. You make me feel dumb. _

Sesshomaru suppressed a smile at that. _Maybe you are dumb. Maybe you're just a silly human girl who's so wound up over a filthy half-breed calling her a few names that you can't even think straight. _

The reply to that was mocking, jaunty._**You're**__the one who's wasting his time talking to such a silly human girl. Who do you __think's__ the dumb one now?_

His lips twitched. _Perhaps I enjoy talking to silly human girls. _

Kagome's reply was low, teasing, her tone almost flirtatious, and Sesshomaru could practically hear her breathy tone and see her coy look at him. _...Do you now?_

He choked, but before he could reply, another message arrived, one with quite a different mood. _Ugh. We were passing through a village and InuYasha got beat upside the head by the village elder for saying he smelled. I'll have to cook lunch and heal him before we can continue on. _There was a pause. _Thanks for cheering me up and calming me down. I didn't know you knew how to communicate like this_, she said, playful. _Then again, I suppose there's a lot of things about you I don't know._

Sesshomaru smiled despite himself. _It was my pleasure. Best of luck dealing with the idiot hanyou._

There was a faint, exasperated reply of _baka_ as Sesshomaru pulled himself out of his thoughts, returning to the normal world once more, leaving his head. He was startled to find Rin and Jaken both staring at him silently, their eyes wide, and he quickly checked his person to make sure there wasn't anything defacing his clothes.

"What?" he said curtly, and Jaken quickly looked away, muttering an apology, while Rin continued to stare.

"Sesshomaru-sama looked... happy," Rin said, awed. "Does talking to Kagome-sama always make Sesshomaru-sama smile like that?"

Sesshomaru tensed, hiding all his reactions, before coughing briefly and looking away.

"I don't know. Does it matter? Maybe. Perhaps."

He glanced back towards Rin, who was grinning now, having discovered some deep dark secret, and felt his cheeks start to heat up before he repressed the reaction, shoving it down. It wasn't as if it _mattered._ Rin was overly excited over nothing. _Nothing._

Because it wasn't a bad thing that he enjoyed talking to Kagome. Or unusual or uncharacteristic of him in the slightest.

...Right?

Still, Sesshomaru couldn't seem to banish the slight feeling of satisfaction knowing that he'd made Kagome happy again.

¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°°º¤¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸

Did you like it? Hate it? Get a kick out of the secret message that's revealed when you read every fourth word? Regardless, please let me know! Please, review!


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: **Hahaha, I finished another chapter! Yay. Many thanks to everyone who faithfully reviews and helps encourage me to keep going, even when school's a bloody nightmare and hell on earth. And I do mean everyone. I love you all dearly. Even if some of you are silly and actually look for secret messages in my chapters. But I love you all.

Many thanks to **Dave** for betaing!

**Elements**

**Chapter 13**

Despite Kagome's former implication that she might be obliged to stay a while at the village from InuYasha's tactlessness, Sesshomaru was Not Pleased to find she had spent the night there.

Villages were disgusting, filthy places; just packs of useless people who came together to try and protect themselves from what would kill them alone. And such a village was _no _place for a miko of the elements to stay. A miko such as her should clearly sleep out in the wilderness so as to be protected by nature in her slumber, instead of relying on some pathetic ningen guard to keep her safe.

Plus, it was much easier to watch over her when it was only her and her team, without so many filthy humans about.

So many filthy, disgusting, _male _humans crawling around, not worthy of the ground on which she trod.

Sesshomaru scowled at the thought.

At any rate, Sesshomaru reflected, there was clearly been no way to contact her as things stood. She was inside a hut, presumably somewhere in the village, while he was outside in the wind. There was no way to send a message, and even if there was, he couldn't be sure such a thing would rouse her from her sleep. So really, entering the village to go after her for their next lesson was the only logical course of action. Anyone could see that.

The small human child standing in front of him now, though, didn't seem to understand that concept, if the increasingly dumb way he was staring up at him was any indication.

Sesshomaru restrained a sigh.

"I _asked_ you," he said again, his eyes narrowing, "where the miko is staying."

The child blinked.

"Where is the hanyou known as InuYasha?"

The child put its dirty thumb into its mouth.

"Where is Kagome?"

The child still didn't move.

"Human," Sesshomaru said curtly, flicking his claws. "If you do not answer this Sesshomaru's questions this instant, I will dismember your body, cut out your tongue, and give your severed head to Rin as a plaything. Now, for the last time... where is the miko?"

The child laughed and clapped its hands, pointing to Sesshomaru's acidic green talons, beaming up happily at the taiyoukai.

"Gween!" it announced proudly.

"Yuichi!" A harried woman ran over and hurriedly swept the child into her arms, shaking an admonishing finger at the child. "What did Mommy say about playing away from her? Now leave the nice man alone and we'll go cook Daddy his breakfast, okay?"

"His hand gween!" the child proudly announced, waving at Sesshomaru. The woman blinked and looking up at him, meeting Sesshomaru's eyes for the first time.

"Woman," he said curtly. "Your child has done this Sesshomaru a grave offense. However, it will be overlooked and forgiven if you tell me where the miko-"

"**YOUKAI!!"**

Sesshomaru winced, the high-pitched shriek slicing through his sensitive ears, covering them quickly as the woman screeched on.

"YOUKAI AT THE GATE!! YOUKAI!! YOUKAIIIII!!"

"Youkai??"

"Youkai?! Where?!"

"Got it!!"

"Youkai!!"

Admist all the yelling, a hoard of angry-looking humans quickly assembled around him, looking like they'd run from the mud. They were all holding some sort of weapon in their hand, be it a pitchfork or hoe, and a mix of rage and fear shone out from all their dirt-smudged faces.

Sesshomaru sniffed.

"Humans. This Sesshomaru requires to know-"

"Get him!!"

A pitchfork was launched at him as the yelling crowd surged forward. Sesshomaru's eye twitched as he easily swept it aside.

"Really, now-"

"You'll never take this village!"

"I only need-"

"MY BABY! He tried to kill my baby!"

"-miko, Kagome-"

"Come on, let's kill him!"

"Surely we can best this weak beast!"

Another farming tool launched at him, Sesshomaru snapped. No longer caring if Kagome would be upset if he killed these creatures or not, he slammed a hand to the ground, blasting the front row of people back with a wave of youki, his hair flying back as he channeled the raw power of the earth with an inhuman yell.

The earth was being much more generous this time, Sesshomaru noted dimly, the ground beneath him pushing a high plateau into the air, putting him ten feet above his enemies. Perhaps it was because he was protecting himself.

"Don't be intimidated!! We can still get him!!"

A primitive explosive of some kind was launched, and his acid whip lashed out, slashing it into oblivion and cutting down a row of the encircling villagers.

"Ridiculous," he murmured, his eyes sharpening, darkening to a deep amber.

The villagers kept coming, swarming, and Sesshomaru slashed at them, the power of the earth rising through him, flowing directly into his hands and whip, making it stronger than ever. One hand remained firmly on the hilt of his sword should he need to draw it, while the villagers screamed and swore, throwing sutras and religious relics. Cutting down a sutra, Sesshomaru hissed as the beads from a rosary burned.

"Foolish _humans,_" he hissed, his eyes bleeding to red. "Do you really _think_ that you can best _me_?" He crouched slightly, youki flowing through him freely, prepared to transform.

"**STOP!!"**

There was a loud **BOOM** and all the villagers were thrown to the ground by some sort of powerful shockwave. Sesshomaru gripped his platform tightly with his claw, his sudden rush of power gone. He scanned the crowds quickly, looking for the source of the sudden quake, as the villagers slowly got to their feet, groaning.

"Just _what_ is going on?"

His eyes flew to a familiar figure, a girl clad in a white blouse and green skirt pushing her way to the front, her vivid blue eyes practically flaming with frustration and fury.

For the first time since entering the village, Sesshomaru relaxed.

"Kagome-"

"Priestess, this demon tried to eat my baby!" The hysterical woman threw herself onto the miko's feet, weeping, blocking her way, making Kagome blink and look slightly disturbed. "Please, oh miko, send him to the Hell he so rightly deserves!"

Sesshomaru scowled, offended by the blatant untruth of this statement, only to hear others jump in.

"He wants to destroy our village!"

"-ruined the road, did you see what he-"

"-completely cut down Nakamaru!! Do you see these wounds?!"

"-hungry for flesh-"

"-evil, cruel beast-"

"-tried to _kill_ my _child_-"

Sesshomaru growled and the crowd screamed, moving back as one. Kagome's lips twitched, looking as if she were suppressing a laugh. Sesshomaru watched as she pushed her way through the crowd, nimbly leaping to the top of the platform, landing in a crouch. Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow, mildly impressed by her agility, and she flushed.

"Air trick," she muttered, looking down at the crowd, who was not calling for her to mind her safety. "Mind telling me just what's going on?"

Sesshomaru scowled. "I came to find you and these villagers attacked me. It was completely unprovoked."

Kagome smiled slightly, amused. "Completely?"

Sesshomaru bit his lip, suppressing any indication of embarrassment. "I wouldn't have really killed the child," he said, annoyed, glancing away. He heard Kagome laugh as she took his hand, and Sesshomaru quickly turned to look at her as she held their hands up high.

"See here, oh faithful villagers! I have tamed this taiyoukai and saved our humble village at large!" She shook his hand in emphasis, and the crowd erupted into deafening cheers. Sesshomaru recoiled slightly at the noise, shooting Kagome a venomous look, which she deflected.

"If you hadn't made such a grand entrance, such a grand gesture wouldn't be necessary, you know," she commented. Sesshomaru folded his arms silently, a clear indication of his disapproval, and Kagome's lips twitched.

"Okay," she said. "You're never going to see these villagers again, and all those who know who you are who hear of this tale will know you could have cut them all down if you wanted to. There's no shame in using diplomacy to get what you want, you know. Just let me walk with you and they'll leave you alone. Then we can talk about whatever you wanted, and it'll give me a chance to ask about how you pulled off that earth-elevating move you used back there." She met his eyes, her own blue pleading. "Please?"

Reluctant, Sesshomaru bit his lip, trying to hold onto his ire, though his irritation was already flowing out of him as he looked at her, a feeling akin to pride playing in his mind from her inferred compliment to his progress.

"...fine," he acquiesced.

Kagome gave him a happy, grateful smile, and Sesshomaru felt the last of his anger leave him. She raised a hand slightly, and the earthen platform started to sink back into the ground, the crowd oohing and aweing appreciatively at the display of power. Sesshomaru felt a vein pulse at their admiration. He'd been the one to create such a spectacle, after all.

There was enthusiastic applause as Kagome finally descended, her hand still on his, leading him. She smiled uncertainly at the villagers as she walked him through the crowds, relaxing as soon as they turned a corner, leaving them out of sight.

"Sorry," she said, looking at him sideways. "I didn't really know any other way to get them to leave you alone."

Sesshomaru felt his something inside him twitch, and he turned her hand over in his, clasping it so he was now holding hers as well.

"You only did what was necessary to do," he told her, feeling gratified as Kagome ducked her head and blushed.

"I still wish you'd just waited or something," she said, her hand tightening slightly on his, her cheeks still tinged. "All the uproar... it's hardly worth a riot to get to me."

Sesshomaru bit back the odd urge to tell her that she'd be worth all of their lives and more. "I am not the one who started a riot," he said.

"You could have ignored them," she pointed out. "You certainly didn't try to halt it at all."

Sesshomaru's eyes glinted. "If they had just listened to my request, no one would have been harmed."

"That's about as likely as InuYasha growing wings and flying off into the sky," Kagome said dryly.

Sesshomaru turned and stared, while Kagome flushed.

"Well, think about it. If you were a human, Sesshomaru, and a demon came into your village, what would be the first thing you'd think?"

Sesshomaru considered. "I suppose that a greater being was about to smite my insignificant life and eradicate my pathetic rendition of a town-"

"_Exactly_," Kagome said, looking at him. "Sesshomaru, most demons who visit human villages are there to destroy them. Even you wouldn't have come here if it wasn't for me."

"They could have listened to what I had to say," Sesshomaru argued. "They would have known I meant no unnecessary harm."

"It's been trained and ingrained into them," Kagome replied, leading him up a set of stairs and onto a wooden platform. "When a demon attacks, fight first, think later. You can die in the time it takes to form a thought. Those villagers listening to what you had to say was just about as likely as you backing down from that fight."

Sesshomaru opened his mouth to object, before stopping and pausing to think. Not backing down from a fight was near-instinctual for him, carved into his mind and running in his blood. Could such humans really have the same sort of reaction to protecting their village?

He glanced over at Kagome, who was watching him, and nodded once.

"You may have a point," he acquiescing. "However..." Kagome's eyes shone with curiosity, and Sesshomaru smirked. "If you knew I would never back down from a fight, why did you say I should have ignored the villagers before?"

Kagome laughed.

"I'm a girl," she said, smiling. "I'm allowed to contradict myself."

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes and Kagome smiled, before stopping in front of a large set of doors.

"We're here," she said. She toed off her shoes and knocked once, before opening the doors into the room.

Sesshomaru squinted slightly, letting his eyes adjust to the light in the room. The room was large, neat enough, adorned with tatami mat, and as he turned to examine it in more detail, he became instantly aware of a creature leaping at his face.

"SESSHOMARU!!"

Sesshomaru elegantly side-stepped the attack, letting the red-clad hanyou crash into the closed doors behind him. "InuYasha," he curtly replied.

InuYasha quickly got to his feet again, crouching low. "What do you want?" he demanded, his golden eyes sharp. "Why have you come here?"

"Not that it is your business, but I intend to talk with the miko," Sesshomaru said crisply. He paused, looking down his nose at his brother. "I didn't intend for filth and dirt to be lurking about."

"Bastard!" InuYasha rose quickly to lunge at him only to be held back by the monk, and Sesshomaru smirked, only to have Kagome shoot him a dark look.

"Don't antagonize," she said, annoyed. "There was enough trouble in the village already."

Sesshomaru hid a scowl as InuYasha relaxed and looked to her gratefully, before whirling on Sesshomaru once more.

"The villagers attack you, Sesshomaru?" he smirked, flashing his fangs. "And you needed Kagome here to come and save you? Poor, pitiful taiyoukai..."

Sesshomaru snarled, showing his own teeth, only to be cut off by Kagome once again.

"InuYasha, he's not here to fight," she said, exasperated. "No instigating."

"No outright lying either, hanyou," Sesshomaru shot back. "Naraku will repent his evil before this Sesshomaru needs saved or pitied."

"Then why'd Kagome have to go to the village?" InuYasha retorted, his eyes gleaming. "It's okay, really," he added, condescending. "Surely you can't expect a poor taiyoukai with a missing arm to be able to handle a few humans..."

Sesshomaru smirked, triumph glittering in his eyes. "She came to stop the carnage," he said, pushing up his sleeves. "And as for the arm-"

There was a wild yell and a loud clang of metal as InuYasha rushed him and Sesshomaru parried his Tessaiga with his own sword. Both brothers struggled, pushing against the other, their venom clear.

"InuYasha! Sesshomaru!" Kagome's shout echoed through the hall.

"Kagome, he's got his arm back!" InuYasha yelled back, his eyes not leaving Sesshomaru's for an instant. "We can't just let-"

"He's had it back for a while! InuYasha!"

"A _while?? _You're lying! He'd have attacked us before now if he had!"

Sesshomaru briefly wondered if his brother was truly so dense as to have not noticed it before or if it was due to the loose kimono sleeves hiding it, before dismissing it as a combination between the two.

"A new arm doesn't mean he's going to kill us all! Relax, InuYasha! It's not a big deal!"

"Not a big deal?!" InuYasha raged, clashing swords with Sesshomaru again, thrusting heedlessly, Sesshomaru easily dodging his swipes. "He's an evil taiyoukai! He's tried to kill us before, and he'll try it again! We can't just let him-"

"InuYasha! Sit!"

InuYasha crashed to the ground, a flash of flames coming from nowhere, and Sesshomaru felt a strong hot wind encircle him for, refusing to let him move. Kagome stalked over to InuYasha angrily, nevertheless helping him up, giving him a look.

"He's _not _going to hurt any of us, alright?" she said tightly. "He just wants to talk to me. It's his turn to teach me something. Just try to ignore him and relax while he does, okay?"

Sesshomaru's lips twitched at the thought of his brother being able to ignore his presence, and if InuYasha's doubtful scoff was any indication, his thoughts were of the same pattern as well.

"Come on, InuYasha." Sesshomaru watched as the taijiya eased him back towards the wall, to the other side of the room where she and the monk resided with the demon kit. "They'll be fine. Come on..."

Sesshomaru observed as Kagome watched the hanyou reluctantly surrender to the other girl, relaxing slightly as she turned back to him. "That could have gone easier," she said, looking tired.

Sesshomaru smirked. "I thought it went rather well."

"We can talk over here," she said, moving to a table at the other side of the room, sitting on it instead of by it as was typical. Sesshomaru shrugged, opting to sit the traditional way.

"Do people sit on tables where you come from?" he asked.

Kagome looked at him, a small smirk touching her lips. "We can sit in air, where I come from."

Sesshomaru blinked. "Air? How can one sit on air?"

"Not sit _on_ it. _In_ it. Where I am from, people can fly and sit while in the air."

"You lie," he said, incredulous. "Humans cannot fly."

"Can't we?" Kagome said, her tone playful, amused. "Anything is possible, Sesshomaru."

"Some things are not possible," Sesshomaru said flatly. "A tree will not grow down. A sword will not move on its own. And ningen cannot fly."

"Everyday new things are being done and discovered," Kagome countered. "Humans _can_ fly, monkeys can be sent to the moon, humans and demons get along, and mechanical swords can be programmed to do what they will."

"Ridiculous," Sesshomaru objected. "You must come from delusions, for nothing of the sort has even occurred around here."

Kagome smiled, her eyes sparkling. "Can't you think of anything, Sesshomaru?" she said. "Can you think of nothing that has occurred lately that you would have never expected?"

Sesshomaru paused.

If he really considered it, he supposed he _had_ seen things he'd previous thought were impossible. His father had made a mountain move in his youth, demanding the spirit in it leave his lands. His mother had shown him Hell, literally, a place he'd thought imaginary. And there were recent things, too.

Every since his acquaintance with Kagome, he'd seen impossibilities constantly shattered as she ran heedlessly on. The girl split the earth, conjured fire, made something from nothing, and broke nearly every law of nature that he knew.

He looked at her again, tilting his head. If someone was to make the impossible possible, it only made sense that it would be her.

"...I have seen a tree grow down," he said reluctantly. "Rin's mastery over the earth shrunk it to make it a better height to climb. I have also seen someone return to life, for I have done it myself."

"See?" Kagome said triumphantly. "There are things that you thought impossible that have been done. So are others so unbelievable?"

"Humans flying are still beyond me," Sesshomaru said, raising an eyebrow. "Control over a sword could come without touch, I suppose, but seems to be cheating, and reaching the moon is simply ridiculous. For the other, however..."

Sesshomaru locked eyes with hers, vivid amber holding cerulean blue.

"I have learned that youkai and ningen can do much more together than just get along," he murmured, his eyes gleaming.

Kagome's eyes widened as her face flushed, and Sesshomaru found himself noting how she looked with the color on her cheeks. Intending to call her out on her blush, he found himself galling silent despite himself, Kagome's eyes still holding his.

Despite the blush on her cheeks, Kagome's gaze remained unabashed, unashamed, as if she had nothing to hide from him, no reason to avert her gaze. Defiant blue held dark amber, and Sesshomaru felt time slow down as her eyes slowly softened, a flicker of nervousness darting within.

He moved towards her, slowly, one hand reaching out to her face as she looked back at him, her eyes soft, wide, her cheeks still colored prettily, her lips inviting...

A loud **SNAP** broke the trance, crackling through the air, and Sesshomaru leapt back, the spell broken. Kagome yelled, beating her skirt out, which seemed to have spontaneously caught fire, and Sesshomaru stared.

"Kagome! Are you alright?!"

InuYasha was on his feet in a moment at her side, concerned, and Sesshomaru felt a momentarily rush of gratitude that he was there. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Sesshomaru slowly pulled himself together, gathering his thoughts once more, forcing his heartbeat to slow and calm down.

What had he been doing...? It was almost as if he'd been enchanted, running on something that didn't need thought. It was unheard of, for him to lose control of his actions in such a way, to act on such foreign instincts.

He glanced back, glad that his brother hadn't been watching when the exchange had occurred.

"I'm fine, InuYasha," Kagome said, looking up at him reassuringly, her skirt effectively put out. "I just knocked over a candle. I'm fine now."

InuYasha looked at her suspiciously, not seeing a fallen candle on the table, but returned to his seat, casting warning looks at Sesshomaru every once in a while. There was a long moment of silence, neither of the two looking at each other, both motionless, completely soundless.

"You are in need of help controlling your emotions," Sesshomaru said finally. Kagome looked over at him flatly, holding up her singed skirt.

"You think?"

Sesshomaru withheld a smirk. "It never ceases to amaze me how emotional you get," he said.

"_That's_ not fair, to use this as an example," Kagome said, giving him a dirty look. Sesshomaru wisely retreated, not wanting to discuss the strange exchange between them at the moment either.

"Fine," he said, "but what of other things? Like when I found you in the valley, lost in your power?"

"That was InuYasha's fault," she said hotly. "He'd been insulting me, and-"

"But _you_ reacted," he pointed out, amber eyes flickering. "You are the one who holds control over such things. How can you let things get to you so?"

"How _can't_ you?" Kagome retorted. "When someone's insulting you or something, how can you just ignore what they say?"

"What they say doesn't _matter_," Sesshomaru said, his eyes moving to look at her. "They say only words, things meant to make you angry, to make you lose control. They cannot affect you through only words or their actions; only you can give a person that power, if you wish."

"So it's that sticks and stones thing?" Kagome said, dismissive. "Sorry, Sesshomaru. Been there, done that, and it doesn't work."

"It is _not _just sticks and stones," Sesshomaru said, wondering what odd human lesson that was. "It's a lesson of being your own person and not relying on what others think."

Kagome turned to look at him, deep blue eyes locking with his. "And just how do you do that?"

"You realize who you are and what you are capable of," Sesshomaru said, holding her gaze. "Once you know that, no one can stop you if you do not allow it."

Their eyes held each other for a long moment, amber against blue, before Kagome broke away.

"How're you supposed to do that?" she said. "How do you hold onto your emotions and not let people get to them? Sometimes you just can't help what you feel."

"Through practice," he said, standing to look down at her. "So when the time comes, your emotions are used enough to being subdued to not react violently at all."

"But what kind of practice is there for that?" Kagome said desperately, her eyes shining, confused. "I've tried to restrain myself, and usually I'm a very patient person, but sometimes things just get out of hand and I-"

"Kagome," Sesshomaru said, slightly struck by her raw and hopeless tone. "Kagome, you can- it only takes practice-"

"HOW _DARE _YOU!!"

There was a flurry of movement and Sesshomaru landed nimbly back on his feet, Tokijin withdrawn, while InuYasha glared at him venomously, Tessaiga shining in the light.

"How _dare_ you!" he spat, enraged. "How dare you even so much as _think_ her name-"

"InuYasha!" Kagome cried, caught off-guard, confused. "What's going on? Sesshomaru didn't even-"

"He said your _name_," InuYasha seethed, his eyes glinting angrily at his brother. "He didn't even bother- didn't even think to- just presumed that he could-"

Understanding sparked in Sesshomaru's mind.

He had called her Kagome.

InuYasha ran at him again and Sesshomaru deflected his blow, his own eyes sharpening rapidly, perceiving the rage with which InuYasha fought. He parried a blow, then hit his brother away forcefully, sending him crashing into a vase.

"Such anger, InuYasha," Sesshomaru remarked, dusting off his kimono as his brother quickly got to his feet. "Aren't we overreacting just a bit at the lack of an honorific?"

"You can't-" InuYasha sputtered, furious, unable to compose himself for his anger. "You can't- you have to ask- that's only for close-"

Sesshomaru smiled nastily. "Perhaps Kagome and I are closer than you think."

There was an enraged yell as InuYasha charged him again, swords clashing loudly as Kagome yelled for them to stop, the abrupt battle only ending when Sesshomaru pushed InuYasha into a wall.

"You _can't_-" InuYasha panted, his eyes dark. "You can't just _presume_ you can use-"

He moved towards him again, but Sesshomaru easily swept aside, an idea forming in his mind.

"Kagome," he said. "Come here."

"Don't call her that!" InuYasha yelled, swinging again, but Sesshomaru caught the blade and swung it away, sending InuYasha reeling.

"What?" Kagome's eyes widened, astonished.

"Come here."

Sesshomaru watched, one eye warily on InuYasha as Kagome approached obediently, biting her lip. "What?"

"You are to battle InuYasha," he told her, handing her Tenseiga, watching as her eyes widened. "This blade will channel your energy well; it is intended for good. Battle him as best you can and practice holding your emotions in as you do."

"I can't possibly fight with this," Kagome objected, incredulous. "I've never fought with a sword beyond basic fencing in gym class! And he's a hanyou! A fighter! I can't spar InuYasha, let alone with this!"

"Wasn't it you who said that anything was possible?" Sesshomaru smiled.

Kagome stopped and stared.

"Sesshomaru!" InuYasha's angry yell echoed throughout the room, and Sesshomaru turned. "I don't care what you're planning, but leave Kagome out of it!"

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. "But brother," he said, his tone full of false concern. "It is Kagome's wish to spar with you to master an aspect of herself. Who are you to deny her wishes, InuYasha?"

His surprise was obvious at hearing this, Sesshomaru noted with satisfaction, while InuYasha's brow quickly creased again.

"Don't call her that!" he yelled, yanking out Tessaiga once more, fury burning in his eyes. "You can't just- you need to- you can't-"

"Ah, but InuYasha," Sesshomaru said, smiling cruelly. "It was Kagome who gave me the permission to use her name."

There was a loud, piercing scream of dismay, and Sesshomaru bent down, covering his ears, noting the others wincing as he clenched his jaw. When the horrid sound was over, Sesshomaru slowly stood, only to see that InuYasha's eyes had bled to red.

"You want to fight, wench?" he snarled at Kagome, venomous, brandishing his sword at a motionless, terrified Kagome. "Then c'mon. Let's fight."

Sesshomaru silently reflected that this would be a very bad time for him to be wrong.

¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ ø,¸¸,ø ¤º°°º¤¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸

Sesshomaru was insane, Kagome thought, panting as she ran. Completely, utterly, fully insane. Why else would he have stuck an angry crazed hanyou on her?

"Fight him, Kagome!" Sesshomaru called to her again, and Kagome mentally wished he'd just shut up or give her some more useful instruction than 'stand and fight'. There was another scream of outrage from behind her at hearing Sesshomaru call her by her name once more, and Kagome ran faster, dodging around a decorative vase, only to hear it crash as InuYasha went by.

"Kagome, fight him! Running like this is useless!"

Kagome felt a vein in her forehead twitch. "I don't know how!" she yelled back.

"Just- make your sword hit his and try to get him off-guard!"

The vein pulsed again. Well, Kagome thought, if a ridiculous youkai wanted her to fight but wouldn't teach her how, then she'd just have to figure it out herself.

Wrenching herself around, Kagome swung Tenseiga, a loud clash echoing as the two swords came to blows.

"Go, Kagome!" Shippo cheered from the sidelines. Kagome gritted her teeth, using all her strength to hold the sword against his, watching as InuYasha snarled, pulling his sword back once more.

"Run!!" Ignoring the kitsune, Kagome swung back again, intent on stopping InuYasha's new blow before it came near her. She missed, hitting his blade far too late, the swords slicing by the side of her, entirely too close for comfort.

"Watch his eyes! You'll be able to see what he's going to do there!"

Forcing her eyes away from the sword, Kagome looked at InuYasha's eyes, crazed, demonic, red possessed things.

"Duck! DUCK!!"

Shrieking, Kagome ducked and rolled away, narrowly avoiding Tessaiga's blow. "Watch it!!" she yelled at InuYasha, who scoffed.

"If you want to fight, then fight!" he shot back, eyes slowly returning to an angry gold. "It's not like you're going to die, between your healing powers and Sesshomaru's sword! You could get your head cut off and still be okay!"

"I'd rather _not_ just the same, thanks!" she snapped back, parrying his blow as best she could, both swords clashing to the ground.

"Scared now?" InuYasha sneered, striking again, Kagome dodging backwards. "You weren't afraid at first, when your precious _Sesshomaru_ suggested you fight. The blind acceptance starting to wear off now?"

"He's trying to _help_ me!" Kagome said hotly, striking angrily, only to have InuYasha deflect it easily.

"Yeah, or is he?" he dismissed. "You've never even _held_ a sword, and he's making you full-out _fight_."

"Shut _up!!_" Kagome charged at him, livid, only to have InuYasha dodge her easily, sending her crashing into a wall.

Dazed, Kagome forced herself up, gritting her teeth. This seemed all too familiar for her, and she had a feeling she wasn't doing what she was supposed to.

"Nice," he mocked her, his own anger still clear. "Maybe you should kill yourself is Sesshomaru tells you to do that, too."

"Cut it out!" Kagome flew at him, angry, slashing the sword the best she could, InuYasha parrying her blows easily, his own eyes like iron boring into her own. Sweeping a blow aside, he darted in and shoved, sending her careening away, trying to catch her balance.

"See? You can't fight. I'm not even trying. And you still think you're safe to go out on your own?"

Sesshomaru was trying to tell her something, Kagome's mind registered dimly, but all she could hear was the blood rushing in her ears as she charged InuYasha again, yelling. He dodged and sent her spinning around with a well-timed swipe, and she crashed into a wall, seeing stars.

What wasn't she doing right? She didn't know how to fight, but it couldn't be _that _hard, now, could it? Why couldn't she do anything?

"You just going to stay there on the floor?" InuYasha jeered, a jaunty smirk firmly in place. "I must admit, the flooring suits you rather well."

Kagome struggled to get up, her body aching. This was hopeless, wasn't it? There was absolutely no point to-

_KAGOME._

Kagome froze sharply, a booming voice consuming her mind.

_Keep in mind your purpose! You are fighting like InuYasha does; all emotion, no reason. Force your emotions down as you fight him! When you first control yourself, you can control that around you with ease._

Air messages? Now didn't seem like the right time for Sesshomaru to-

_Listen to me! Kagome, focus everything you have right now on __not__ letting InuYasha's taunts get to you! You are your own person, with your own emotions! He can't touch them if you don't allow him to!_

Actually, she reflected dimly;

That sort of made sense.

Recovering herself, Kagome got back to her feet, entering into a crouch, shifting the blade in her hands, her eyes hard.

"Back for more?" InuYasha sneered. "Are you masochistic or something?"

Kagome ignored him, moving towards him, blade poised, and he scoffed.

"Fine, then. Don't come crying to me when you get hurt."

Kagome bit her lip, forcing herself to focus on his eyes, not his words. The golden orbs twitched ever so slightly, she noted, just before the blade began to move, just the smallest detail, really-

_**CLANG**_

The loud noise caught Kagome off guard and she looked up, astonished, seeing the two swords struggling against each other over her head. She blinked, realizing she'd moved instinctively, knowing where to go to defend herself from the blow.

Kagome smiled grimly. This time, she'd been in place.

Annoyed, InuYasha moved again, striking, and Kagome put up her sword, deflecting his blow as if fell to her right. He lashed out again, and she blocked this one too, biting her lip, forcing herself to stay on task and ignore his building anger.

"So you can deflect blows," he snarled. "But can you handle a full onslaught? You're going to end up killing yourself with this foolish act, girl."

Kagome's eyes were cold.

"Fine, then!!"

As he charged her, Kagome swept to the side, tripping him with the tip of her sword, watching as he stumbled. As he turned, her blade swept up, ready to parry his attacks, stepping carefully backwards as she deflected his blows, trying not to panic at his snarling face.

"You have no idea what you're doing! You're going to end up dead, if you keep doing this, keep listening to that brat! Sesshomaru wants you dead, Kagome! You have to stop listening to him!!"

_No_, Kagome thought grimly, _I don't. Not if I don't want to_. She clashed her blade with InuYasha's again, sending them both reeling, and InuYasha yelled and ran at her again.

Fighting was much easier when she ignored InuYasha's insults, she noticed, quickly side-stepping another attack. It was much easier to focus and figure out what was going to happen next. In fact, she realized, striking aside another stroke of his, she almost felt like she could take the offensive.

Not with the sword, though, of course.

"Why are you so passionate in defending him?!" InuYasha yelled, slashing his sword, loud clangs and scrapes nearly drowning him out from the dueling blades. "What's wrong with you?! He's going to be the end of you!!"

"Why do you care?!" The air twisted, and Kagome lashed out at InuYasha, her eyes narrowed, this time in a controlled attack. InuYasha leapt back, apparently dodging her blade easily, only to land in shock, holding a hand to his face. He pulled it back, looking at his palm.

There was blood.

InuYasha looked up at her, livid, and Kagome smiled grimly.

"Who's scared now?"

With an inhuman yell, InuYasha charged her again, Kagome dodged quickly, the air letting her glide freely to the side. With her head in charge, Kagome found herself able to pull on the element to aid her in her fight, giving her blade an added speed an edge beyond what she'd had before.

InuYasha yelled again, but Kagome didn't listen, didn't care, as she parried Inuyasha's blows quickly and easily, sending him crashing into the wall this time. He was up again in a second, back for more, but Kagome fended him off, keeping her concentration, bitter focus at the forefront of her mind.

"You're can't do this, Kagome!" InuYasha yelled, clashing blades with her again forcefully, and Kagome struggled to meet his blow, the air adding to her strength. "You're giving up everything to go with Sesshomaru! He's going to kill you some day!"

"_I'm_ not the one he hates!" Kagome shot back, finding herself able to retort, still careful to suppress any powerful reaction of rage that might come. "Just because he wouldn't mind if _you_ kicked the bucket doesn't mean he feels the same about _me_."

They clashed swords again, struggling once more, inches from each other, InuYasha's face twisted into a snarl as the air around them started to swirl.

"You think he cares about you?" he snarled, venomous. "He's a taiyoukai, and you're just a stupid girl! He couldn't care less if you were to vanish off the face of the earth."

Kagome felt something rise within her, but she shoved it down, ignoring it, focusing on parrying his next blow before she replied.

"If that's true," Kagome told him, her eyes sharp, "then why is he still here?"

InuYasha yelled again, charging at her once more, the blades clashing, and Kagome felt like the blade would nearly break with the force.

"Why do you care so much about him?!" InuYasha screamed, his face a mask of fury, the air around them increasing to full-blown winds, isolating them in a circle, drowning out the screams of the others. "What do you care?! He's no one, Kagome! Why do you keep defending him?! Just what's going on between him and you??"

Dimly, Kagome felt something clash deep down in her from his words. She yelled something in response, oblivious as to what, focusing on the emotion rising quickly in her, threatening to spiral out of control. InuYasha's words echoing in her mind, Kagome snarled and grabbed the emotion and _twisted_ it, sending it right out of her through her blade in a concentrated stream.

There was a yell, and Kagome's concentration broke, the blast of emotion vaporizing, and she looked up, blinking, to see InuYasha's head on fire. The hanyou was running around screaming, yelling for water, Tessaiga thrown aside to the floor.

Kagome blinked and gaped, staring at the sword, before numbly picking it up, astonished. InuYasha had thrown aside his blade in battle? That was ridiculous; the only way InuYasha would do something like that were if he were-

Kagome stopped and looked at Sesshomaru who nodded, a thin smile on his lips, something like pride in his eyes. Kagome felt something inside her lock into place, settling down, and she felt her lips curve upward, even as Sango helped InuYasha dunk his head into a wine bowl.

The only way InuYasha would ever, _ever _drop his blade during a fight... would be if he had lost, if the battle was over, in his mind. Only then would he let go of his sword, knowing holding onto it any longer would have no meaning.

InuYasha had lost.

And Kagome had won.

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What thought you? Like the premise? Hate it? Despise the action? Love the characterization? Please, let me know in a review! Please, review!


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** Darlings, darlings, darlings. You all are so faithful to me, waiting months and months for updates as I ruin my life with six AP tests and finals and graduating high school and the like. But I love you all. Thank you for your messages and reviews. They keep me going.

I _will_ finish this story. I promise you all that. But reminders and bothering me to update don't go amiss. Sometimes I just need to remember to write.

Many thanks to **Dave** for betaing again!

**Elements**

**Chapter 14**

An odd, ragtag group of people walked (or stalked, for some of them) through the trees. The group was silent, save for the crunching of leaves and twigs underfoot and the small sighs of the youngest. A man and a woman exchanged a glance, before the man spoke up.

"It's getting late," he said conversationally, perfectly polite. "And it seems that Shippo is getting rather tired. Kagome-sama, do you think we could stop soon for the night?"

The girl made a non-committal noise, stalking on, eyes never deviating from the path in front of her, clearly indicating that _no,_ she didn't care what they did for the night and she didn't care to deign to bother with such trivial things right now, as she was much too busy ignoring the hanyou who stalked on at her side.

The monk tried again. "InuYasha, can we stop soon for the night? It's going to get dark soon."

The half-demon only answered with a snarl.

Miroku sighed. It'd been like this since the night before, since InuYasha had lost the fight. InuYasha had refused to speak to Kagome, who'd been too exhausted and annoyed to do anything about it. Miroku had hoped the two would come to some sort of an agreement in the morning, only to watch, aghast, as the two cleaned up, packed everything away, and set off again without exchanging a word, never so much as looking at each other.

Miroku bit his lip. They'd been carrying on like this all day, silently simmering. It was unlike Kagome to not try and make up with her friends. But it was even more unlike InuYasha to have not snapped and started yelling yet.

"I'm tired!" a little voice piped up.

Sango sighed from beside Miroku. "We're all tired, Shippo," she said quietly. "Whining about it won't help anything."

Shippo scowled but fell silent. There was a silence.

"Of course," Kagome said from in front of them, "if _someone_ hadn't insisted we get on the road before dawn, we wouldn't all be so tired."

InuYasha prickled visibly, his ears reddening in anger. Sango and Miroku exchanged a worried look, but the party lapsed into silence once again.

Walk. Walk. Stomp. Tread. Walk. Walk. Walkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalk-

"I'm hungry!" Shippo complained.

"We're all hungry, Shippo," Miroku said, reminded once again that they were, in fact, traveling with a child, despite the bushy tail. "We'll get you something to eat when we stop for the night."

"But I'm hungry _now_," the kitsune said petulantly. Sango sent him a warning look, and the party fell quiet once more, save the rustling of the leaves.

"Though..."

Sango and Miroku looked up quickly, but InuYasha kept walking, eyes straight ahead, as if he hadn't said anything at all.

"-If _someone_ hadn't idiotically insisted we eat soggy leftover vegetables for lunch and made ramen instead, we wouldn't _be_ this hungry."

Kagome's hand tightened on her bow, her knuckles white. Sango bit her lip, and Miroku silently prayed that the tenuous peace would last.

They could do this. Why, there was bound to be a clearing soon. Kagome and InuYasha could duke it out there, after everyone had eaten. Or before they had eaten, even. He wouldn't be opposed to a little extra dinner as a silent apology for the overly stressful day...

"My feet hurt!" Shippo complained. "I can still feel the rocks stabbing them!"

Miroku and Sango both whirled around to glare at Shippo, only Kagome was already speaking.

"Well, if some moron hadn't made us all walk through the quarry instead of taking the path around it like civilized people, no one's feet would be hurt."

A vein pulsed in InuYasha's temple. "If _someone_ wasn't such a weakling," he snapped, "we'd have been able to go over the quarry just _fine_ and we wouldn't have had to change plans and climb down the jagged cliff instead."

"Funny," Kagome said, cocking her head, still not looking at the hanyou. "I thought this weakling just creamed you in a fight."

InuYasha jerked violently, his face contorting with loathing. "You little-" he snarled, finally looking at Kagome, venom in his eyes. "If you hadn't-"

"Oh, look!" Miroku interrupted loudly, pointing. "A clearing, just up ahead! It's a great place to set up camp for the night, don't you think, Sango?"

"Oh, yes!" Sango said, seizing the opportunity to help diffuse the situation. "There's even a patch of bare ground to make a fire on! How fortunate! Shippo, help me clean out the rest of the grass?"

InuYasha shifted, grumbling to himself, but otherwise fell silent, and Kagome carried on, leading them to the clearing with as much grace and dignity and poise as ever.

"We're here."

Miroku sighed, rubbing his temples. Hopefully, now that the trial of the journey was over for the day, they could all relax a little and forget their gripes.

Kagome and InuYasha, however, seemed to have other ideas.

When Kagome gathered up the firewood for the evening, she "accidentally" dropped it into InuYasha's lap.

InuYasha retaliated by hiding her backpack in a tree.

Kagome sweetly responded that since she seemed to have misplaced her backpack, they'd all have to eat more leftover vegetables and the stale fish that Kirara was carrying.

InuYasha quickly refound the backpack.

_Really_, Miroku thought as he watched InuYasha struggle with matches, only to scramble backwards, glaring, as Kagome conjoured a bright fire with a snap of her fingers. He'd never seen the miko be so passive-aggressive. Usually, the priestess just yelled and stomped and stormed about when she fought, but at least she got the issues out in the open then.

Miroku wasn't sure if this method of handling things was more juvenile or more mature.

"Shippo," Kagome said. "Ask InuYasha to pass me my backpack, will you?"

Shippo blinked, confused.

"But InuYasha's right there," he pointed out. "Why don't you just ask-"

"Please, Shippo?"

Obedient, Shippo trotted over to InuYasha, oblivious to his red-tipped ears.

"Kagome wants you to pass her her backpack," he said.

"Is that so?" InuYasha said nastily, shooting a dark look at Kagome's back. "Well, Shippo, tell Kagome that if she wants her backpack so damned badly, she can come over and get it herself."

Trotting back over, Shippo tugged lightly on the bottom of Kagome's skirt.

"Kagome," he said. "InuYasha said to tell you that you can get your bag yourself."

"Did he now?" Kagome said, not deviating from her task. "Tell InuYasha he's an immature bastard who can't get over the fact that he lost to a girl, will you?"

"InuYasha," Shippo said, weary. "Kagome said-"

"I KNOW what she said-!!"

By the time they were all seated in a circle eating their ramen, things had grown more tense than before. Sango kept looking around, ever wary, ready to bail should they start fighting, while Miroku seemed resigned to the inevitable, placing his staff defensively in front of him as he ate. Shippo knew something was obviously wrong, and as such had opted to go over and eat by Kirara, while Kagome and InuYasha ate silently, Kagome maintaining her cold dignity, InuYasha silently fuming.

The unstable silence lasted until everyone had finished their dinner, when the girls were packing the things away.

"It's lovely weather out, isn't it, Sango?"

"It certainly is, Kagome-chan."

"It's just the type of weather that makes one forget about all their worries and cares and irate hanyous who are being immature and not talking about their issues with their friends and instead storming about pretending to be all tough and manly by being psychologically inept to express themselves-"

"ALL RIGHT, KAGOME!" InuYasha yelled, leaping up, eyes flashing. "Do you have an issue with me?"

Kagome feigned surprise.

"Why, InuYasha," she said, shocked. "I thought it was you who had the issue with me?"

"Cut your bull!" he snapped, glaring. "You've been pulling this shit all day-"

"Maybe I wouldn't have had to 'pull this shit' if you hadn't been such a baby yesterday and just _told_ me what was bothering you-"

"You _fought_ me!" he yelled, incensed. "We had a _fight_-"

"-that was a legitimate duel to help me improve," Kagome finished, standing up. "Don't tell me you're still upset about _that?_"

"Damn right I'm upset about it!" InuYasha snarled. "You brought fucking _Sesshomaru_ into that place and _fought_ me just because _he_ told you to-"

"Oh, so this is about _Sesshomaru_, again, is it?" Kagome said snidely. "I'm not quite sure why you have such an ego-issue with your brother, InuYasha, but if you haven't noticed-"

"He's a ruthless killer!" InuYasha screamed, and Shippo ran for cover under Kirara. "He's an evil murderer! He kills humans for fun! And maybe you haven't noticed, but he's tried to kill us!"

"He hasn't tried to kill anyone for a while, and you've tried to kill him, too," Kagome said calmly. "If anything, he's more than atoned for that by helping us in our quest against Naraku-"

"Don't you dare bring Naraku into this!" InuYasha dismissed with a snort. "You don't care that he's after Naraku too! All _you_ care about is you two and your stupid buddy-buddy lesson-thing you have going on!"

"And what if I do? I'm becoming less of a burden to you, aren't I?" Kagome said coldly, her eyes suddenly made of ice. "I thought that was what you wanted, and if I need to get help from Sesshomaru to accomplish it-"

"Goddamnit, Kagome, you were never a burden!" InuYasha's eyes flared, incensed with anger, but now also with pain, his voice betraying him. "It's just- why do you have to keep going to _him_, why can't you ask Kaede for help-"

"You know Kaede can't help me with this, InuYasha! She flat-out _told _us she has no idea what's going on!"

"Then you can figure it out on your own, or ask Miroku-"

"I've been _trying_, InuYasha! Last time I tried to handle it on my own, I nearly purified you!"

"So we'll try harder! We're all in this together, and-"

"That's why I can't keep endangering you! I have to master this, and if it takes going to Sesshomaru for help-"

"Goddamnit, Kagome!!" InuYasha yelled, seizing her by the upper arm, his eyes blazing. "Can't you see it's _me_ you're supposed to depend on?!"

InuYasha yanked her towards him, crashing his lips onto hers in a heated kiss, Kagome's eyes widening. Sango gasped as Shippo oohed, only to watch as she slammed her heel into InuYasha's foot, making him yelp and his grip loosen, allowing Kagome to forcibly wrench herself out of InuYasha's embrace.

"Ow! What the hell, Kagome-??"

InuYasha hopped around, clutching his foot, before realizing that she hadn't responded, turning to look at the girl. He froze.

"...K-Kagome, ah, look, I didn't-"

"Don't you dare," Kagome said dangerously, her eyes glinting. "Don't you even fucking _dare_."

InuYasha swallowed. "Don't I dare what?" he sneered, but it lacked the usual malice.

"You _made_ your choice," Kagome said curtly, her words coated with venom. "_You_ dragged me along on an emotional roller coaster for years, _you_ decided you'd rather have your old flame, _you _decided to end the chance of anything else we might have had-"

"Kagome," InuYasha said, pleading. "Don't tell me you're still on about that-"

"You can't just undo the past!" she screeched, making InuYasha wince. "You go off with Kikyo at every new moon, kissing and rolling around and whatnot, and then you come back and expect me to take you back with open arms? You've _made_ your choice, and I've made mine to move on! I'm not some whore for you to mess around with when you want to, I'm a person too!"

"Kagome," InuYasha said, his tone desperate. "Kagome, I know you're not- I never meant to treat you like- I didn't- I wouldn't-"

"Fuck you," Kagome spat.

She whirled around, storming off into the forest without another word.

There was a silence.

"_That_ could have gone better," Miroku said conversationally.

InuYasha just groaned.

"What was I supposed to say?" InuYasha said, slumping down onto the ground. "What's she _want _me to say? She can't honestly think I'd be okay with her cavorting around with my _brother-_"

"I don't think she thinks you have any right to say anything about the fact," Sango said, quietly cleaning up. "You surrendered that right when you chose Kikyo over her."

"But she's still _mine_," InuYasha argued. "It's not like I-"

"No, InuYasha," Sango said quietly. "She's still your friend, but she's not yours."

There was a silence.

"Soul skimmers," Shippo said suddenly, pointing up, and they all looked up at the eerie incandescent eels weaving through the trees. Miroku and Sango turned to look at InuYasha, who squirmed.

"W-Well, it's not like Kagome's coming back tonight, so-"

"You could go after her," Miroku said neutrally.

"Y-Yeah, but she's always going on about how she's strong enough to take care of herself now anyways, so-"

"You didn't seem to agree with that fact at all before," Sango observed.

"Yeah, but-" InuYasha fished for words. "Look- I'll be back in a couple days, alright? Just- don't tell Kagome-"

Sango raised an eyebrow as InuYasha raced off through the trees in another direction, following the soul stealers, his legs betraying his anticipation. They watched until he disappeared into the underbrush, and the clearing fell silent once more.

"You'd think he'd have realized Kagome's made peace with him and Kikyo," Sango said, rolling out the sleeping bags. "He's the only thing holding her back, now. She's let go."

"But it's hard for a man to admit that," Miroku pointed out. "Every guy wants to think that a woman will always be there for him and only want him. It's a blow to the ego to realize that a woman might want someone else, too."

Sango raised an eyebrow at him. "Someone's wise tonight," she remarked, skeptical.

Miroku grinned, opening his arms welcomingly. "I can be much more tonight, too, if you let me," he promised, eyes dancing.

"Don't push your luck, monk," Sango snorted, dismissive, but Miroku couldn't hep but smirk as he caught the tell-tale blush on the side of her face.

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_The nerve of him!_ Kagome thought as she stormed through the forest. _I'm allowed to be my own person! He's just got an ego complex with his brother and the fact he lost that stupid fight..._

Despite her anger, Kagome felt a tendril of pride. She'd kept control of her emotions, despite her rage.

_Maybe that fight did more than make everyone upset, after all..._

Kagome sighed, pausing to listen as snippets of InuYasha and Sango's conversation floated to her on the breeze. She raised an eyebrow as InuYasha ran after Kikyo, and couldn't help but snort to herself as she stalked on.

"Going after her right after he- just who does he think he is-"

"Let me guess: the hanyou has done something again."

Kagome jerked, startled, looking up into a nearby tree to see Sesshomaru, peering down at her, one eyebrow delicately arched.

"You should be more aware of your surroundings, Kagome," he commented.

"And you should know better than to sneak up on people," she huffed. Sesshomaru smirked.

"If you're unaware of what's going on around you, you must be upset," he remarked, smoothly descending from the tree. "If you'd like, I can offer companionship and an ear for your anger."

"You're offering to hear a girl complain?" Kagome said, skeptical, but she felt her ire rapidly dissipating with the appearance of the taiyoukai. "You're either immensely masochistic, or you've got something up your sleeve."

"I assure you, it is only the utmost desire to make you feel better that motivates me in this," Sesshomaru said, maintaining a straight face.

Kagome raised an eyebrow, not buying it.

"-that, and I want to hear what the idiot hanyou did this time."

Kagome laughed slightly, more of her anger receding. "That's better."

"Whatever," Sesshomaru said, waving a hand airily. "Shall we go for a walk? My camp is this way."

"If you insist," she said amicably, falling into step beside him.

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It'd been sheer luck that he'd found Kagome. Any idiot with halfway decent hearing could figure out she and the hanyou were fighting, but he hadn't been close enough to hear the content of the argument or to figure out where she'd stormed off to.

Sesshomaru has opted to try and intercept her to figure out what was wrong. He'd expected some sort of backlash from the night before, especially when InuYasha had refused to speak and had glared at him until he'd excused himself from the house, but he'd quietly hoped that it would just intensify InuYasha's hatred of him and that he wouldn't take it out on Kagome.

It bothered him, to realize he didn't want InuYasha to upset Kagome again, but it was reasonable enough, given the pain he'd experienced trying to help her last time the hanyou had upset her.

Kagome seemed alright, now, though, Sesshomaru thought, examining her thoughtfully in the dark as the two walked on. She'd calmed down when she'd seen him, almost as if she couldn't stay angry at the hanyou around him. Sesshomaru wasn't sure if that was a good thing, but it seemed to mean that he cheered her up enough she forgot all negative emotions for a time.

She was happy now, though. She was smiling slightly as they walked through the darkened trees, making their way through the pitch black-

It was pitch black. There was no light. Sesshomaru abruptly realized the light from Kagome's campfire had long since receded, and instinctively seizing her hand, Sesshomaru tried to apologize.

"I forgot humans can't- powerful youkai can see in the dark, so I forgot that-"

Kagome laughed, and Sesshomaru paused.

"If you'd paused to think, you'd have noticed I was carrying on fine," Kagome said, amused, and Sesshomaru blinked.

Wait... she had been, hadn't she?

"I can see in the dark," she commented, answering his unspoken question. "It probably has something to do with the whole light-dark thing. It'd explain why you can see fine, too. But thanks for worrying."

"This Sesshomaru was not worrying," he said stiffly. "If you got hurt and bled, this Sesshomaru would have a mess on his hands when InuYasha found out, and Rin would-"

Kagome laughed again, quietly.

"It's okay, you know," she said, squeezing his hand lightly. "You're allowed to worry for me."

To his horror and embarrassment, Sesshomaru felt his face heat up, and he cursed himself, looking away, hoping that Kagome couldn't see _that_ well in the dark.

"It's right over here," he said quickly, and, stepping over a log, led her into a spacious clearing he had found.

A fire was dying in the center, embers smoldering half-heartedly, just enough to keep them warm. Nearby, Rin was curled up under a quilt, and Jaken was sprawled a short ways away, snoring lightly, mumbling in his sleep every so often. The clearing was flat, connecting the forest to the plains, and Sesshomaru was pleased to see Kagome's quiet smile of approval.

"Nice," she said quietly. "I always hate sleeping under the trees. The dew from the leaves always falls all over the place in the morning."

Sesshomaru led her over to the other side of the fire, guiding her to sit down as he sat down himself. He fanned the fire slightly, frowning as he tried to get the embers to ignite a new log. Kagome smiled and leaned over, and the log suddenly caught as she touched it, before she moved back again.

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow, and she grinned at him, sticking out her tongue. Suddenly possessed with the odd urge to bite it, he gestured to his ward.

"Rin and Jaken are heavy sleepers," he told her. "We needn't worry about waking them with our chatter."

"They're sweet," Kagome said, smiling over at them. "Look at Jaken; he's positioned like he fell asleep watching over her – he's even still holding that staff-"

"Yes, yes, very sweet, how adorable, and all that rot," Sesshomaru said, rolling his eyes. Kagome laughed, and he refocused his eyes on her once more. "We are not here to talk about my ward and my retainer, though. You were going to tell me about what InuYasha did tonight."

Immediately, Kagome's light-hearted mood changed and she stiffened, cold anger seeping into her limbs.

"The _nerve_ of him," she hissed, and promptly launched into her tale.

Sesshomaru was somewhat surprised as he listened. He'd never thought the hanyou could go a whole day without talking or yelling or making a nuisance of himself, and it was fairly difficult to believe he hadn't just whipped out his sword and started threatening people with it. It was amusing, though, to hear about Kagome's snide comments and mean tricks she used to bait him, goading him into talking to her once more, so they could finally have the proper fight they'd been building to all day.

"-And, of course, it was all about _you_, and InuYasha blew a gasket, of course, and started doing stupid things-"

"It was about me?" Sesshomaru interrupted, truly curious. Kagome nodded, rolling her eyes.

"Of course. You're all we've been fighting about recently. It's getting quite boring, actually. _Kagome, he's evil, he'll hurt you, he makes me feel small and insignificant, he made fun of me as a baby, wahh wahh wahh blah blah blah-"_

Sesshomaru snickered at her whiny imitation of his half-brother. "I see what you mean."

"No kidding." Kagome nodded, sighing, hugging her legs to her chest. Sesshomaru looked at her, before tilting his head.

"Kagome," he said, pausing, and she looked up at him. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but- if you've been arguing about this frequently, why was this argument any different?"

"Ah." Kagome's face took on a more dismal note. "Tonight, we got to the bottom of why he has such an issue in the first place."

Sesshomaru was careful with his reply. "Oh?"

"Yeah. He was all 'I'm supposed to protect you!' and 'You're only supposed to depend on me!' and-"

"-that's different than what you thought before?"

Kagome sighed.

"Not really, but- well, I thought it was a rational sort of fear for his friend before," Kagome said, looking at her feet. "It wasn't, though. Idiot yelled that at me and grabbed me and-"

She stopped, looking at the fire, letting it reflect in her eyes.

"And?" Sesshomaru prompted.

"And- you know," Kagome said, squirming slightly. "Showed me. That it wasn't just a 'friend' thing to him at all."

Sesshomaru could practically feel his thoughts grow darker, watching her unease. The hanyou had done something, done something to his Kagome, and Sesshomaru shoved his thoughts to the back of his mind, straining to keep his rationality.

"Tell me," he said, his voice low. "What did he do to you?"

"Nothing, really," Kagome said, uneasy. "It was nothing he hasn't done before, but it still makes me mad-"

Sesshomaru noticed as Kagome's fingers trailed over her lips as she lapsed into silence, and realization flared in his mind.

"He kissed you, didn't he?" he said, wrenching the term from his memory, hatred and loathing and jealousy flaring up suddenly inside. "He kissed you."

Kagome turned to look at him in surprise. "You remembered," she said, surprised. "I taught it to you ages ago."

"Did he kiss you?" Sesshomaru asked, anger creasing his face. Kagome's eyes widened, but she didn't move away.

"Did he kiss you??" he demanded, his voice betraying his emotions. "Did he kiss you? Did that obsolete, little filthy piece of vermin dare to kiss you? Did he?"

Kagome stared at him, her shock at his display of emotion all over her face. She swallowed once, hard.

"...yes."

Sesshomaru let out an unearthly noise, thoughts ripping through his mind. InuYasha had no right, no place being so close to this precious girl and touching her like that and claiming such a thing from her _ever_, let alone when she didn't want it and was clearly upset with him for doing so. _No one_ should ever touch her like that, _no one _save for _him_, he was the only one who was truly her equal, he was the only one who was allowed to have her close and see her eyes and have her react over-

He had no idea why he was like this. It didn't make any sense, it was just a girl, just a stupid girl who was teaching him, but it _did_, she meant everything, it all made sense and she wasn't just a stupid girl she was so much more-

Sesshomaru pulled her to him, taking her face in his hand, his amber eyes smoldering, her wide blue meeting his.

"Kagome."

He could hear her swallow, he was so close. He could feel the small trill that went through her at his touch, see her eyes widen slightly, her pupils dilating, irises darkening...

"Yes?"

Sesshomaru looked at her for a long moment after her reply, his amber eyes like liquid, thoughts and emotions battling fiercely in his mind.

"He never will again," he informed her, and with that, he promptly sealed his lips over hers.

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Read it? Please, review! Let me know what you think! I know what _I_ think of the chapter, but I'm the writer. The reader is bound to think something different. It's always greatly appreciated! Please, review!


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** By this time, you've probably realized that I completely suck at keeping any sort of a regular-update schedule at all. That being said, I _will_ finish this fic (even if it takes a gazillion years), and I do still read and appreciate every review you send. I also greatly appreciate the bombards of annoyed reviews I get demanding to know if I've died and why I haven't finished my story. They remind me to write when I've forgotten and have been busy with a million other things.

Enjoy!

**Elements**

**Chapter 15**

_He **kissed** me! He actually **kissed **me!!_

Kagome's face burned as she hurried back to her camp, embarrassed, her arms wrapped around herself tightly as she barreled through the underbrush. She lifted a hand to touch her lips, remembering, before dropping it quickly and hurrying on.

_He **kissed** me! Oh, if only he hadn't done it when I was expecting it! Now he's bound to be mad at me, and I don't want him to be mad at me too-_

"Kagome-sama?"

Kagome came to a halt, realizing she'd reached her camp. Coloring at her obliviousness, she sank down beside Miroku, careful not to wake Sango or Shippo. InuYasha was nowhere to be found.

Miroku raised an eyebrow at her. "You look conflicted," he commented. Kagome groaned, hiding her face in her hands.

"Is it that obvious?"

Miroku laughed. "Kagome, I would be a very poor friend if I could not tell when you were upset or distressed over something."

Kagome hid her face deeper in her hands, and Miroku chuckled lightly, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"What happened?" he asked. "You seem embarrassed. Something must have occurred since your spat with InuYasha." His eyes sparkled. "Sesshomaru pay you a visit?"

Kagome looked up, suspicious.

"How did you know?" she asked, accusing. Miroku laughed.

"Kagome, you are easier to read than a book," he said, smiling. "Now, what's been going on that has you in such a mess?"

Sighing, Kagome nodded.

"All right," she said moodily. "But no telling anyone else ever, okay?" she shot at him.

Miroku looked affronted. "I would sooner _die_ than spill your secret from my lips," he said, holding a hand to his heart in mock-affront.

Kagome rolled her eyes but smiled. "I'm sure." She paused. "We should probably move away from the fire a ways. I don't want to wake Sango up."

They moved a ways into the forest, still close enough to see everyone, but far enough to not be heard. Hesitantly, Kagome began recanting the tale of her interactions with Sesshomaru, leaving out large parts out, giving Miroku just enough so he could get the general picture of what all was going on. When she reached the part where she had seen Sesshomaru tonight, her face was red again, and Miroku was laughing.

"-I didn't know what to do! I mean, he just _kissed_ me, Miroku! Why would he do that?!"

"Presumably," Miroku said, trying to hide his amusement, failing miserably as a wide smile spread across his face, "because he wanted to."

"But _why_ would he want to-? Oh, I'm so confused!"

"Did you not want him to kiss you?" Miroku inquired, teasing. Kagome flushed.

"Well- I _did_, I guess- but- you shouldn't just do things like that out of nowhere! It surprises people!"

Miroku raised an eyebrow, something in Kagome tone making him suspicious.

"Kagome," he asked carefully, trying to hide his smile. "When Sesshomaru kissed you, did you kiss him _back?_"

Kagome flushed brilliantly.

"I- I _would_ have!" she said hotly. "At least, I think I would have- but he caught me so off-guard, I didn't even have the _chance-_"

"Kagome," Miroku said, biting his lip to keep his smile in check, "what, exactly, happened when Sesshomaru tried to kiss you?"

Kagome's face colored again, and she ducked her head.

"I wasn't expecting it, all right?" she said, defensive. "If I had, I would have been ready for it! But as it was, all I knew was this great youkai was right next to me with _tons _of youki thrumming- and then he _touched_ me and- I was so startled that I didn't do _anything!_ But you know how when you're caught off-guard you respond instinctively, so that's kind of what happened, so my powers just kind of- _reacted-_ and then the next thing I knew there was this loud noise and Sesshomaru was on the ground out cold."

Miroku roared with laughter, while Kagome flushed hotly.

"It's _not_ funny!" she said sharply. "It was _mortifying!_ Kami, Miroku, it was the most embarrassing thing I've ever-"

"I'm sure it was, Kagome," Miroku said, laughing, wiping tears from his eyes. "I'm sure it was. But consider it from _my_ point of view, Kagome. You _knocked Sesshomaru unconscious_ when _he tried to kiss you_." Miroku chuckled again to himself, trying to catch his breath. "You are either a very brave miko or a very foolish girl who Sesshomaru is too wrapped-up in to want to kill."

Kagome flushed as Miroku laughed. "I didn't _mean _to! This was _not_ my fault – blame my powers, or Sesshomaru had acted like a normal person and given me any sort of real warning-"

"Ah, but Sesshomaru _isn't_ a normal person, is he?" Miroku teased. Kagome just looked flustered, before turning away, cheeks flaming.

"If it's any comfort," Miroku added a moment later, "it's highly likely that Sesshomaru won't remember you knocking him unconscious, or the events directly preceding it."

Kagome looked up at the sky, watching the stars, Miroku following suit. A quiet, contented silence descended upon them, and Kagome slowly felt herself relax as she lost herself to the night sky, immersing herself in a realm of starts and galaxies millions of miles away.

"I'm going to teach Sesshomaru fire tomorrow night," Kagome murmured aloud. Miroku glanced at her. "With all this- _whatever,_ I feel for him, it should be an easy lesson. And he's shown emotion for me now, too..."

She trailed off, biting her lip. Miroku paused, before venturing a question.

"Kagome," he asked, "if it will be an easy lesson, why are you so nervous?"

Kagome didn't answer him for a long moment, still staring at the stars. When she finally turned to look at him, Miroku's eyes widened at the glowing, tangled emotions he saw there, and he forced himself not to stare.

"After this lesson..." Kagome said, quiet, her eyes meeting his. "Everything will change."

Miroku shuddered slightly to himself and looked away, trying to get the haunted look of Kagome's eyes out of his head as they watched the stars long into the night.

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Sesshomaru was in a foul mood the next day. He'd awoken far past dawn with a headache that threatened to leave him debilitated, and it had rained during the night, thoroughly soaking his kimono and his shoes. Jaken and Rin had been relieved to see him awake, only to fall back when they saw his murderous expression, opting to remain in the trees.

_What_ had _happened_ last night? Sesshomaru pressed a hand to his head, trying to think through the pain. He'd gone and found Kagome – any fool could feel her, really, she'd been broadcasting her anger for miles and miles – and invited her to return with him to his camp. She'd gone with him, and they'd sat there talking, and he'd coaxed out the truth of what the hanyou had done-

Sesshomaru felt his eyes narrowing, and venom started to flow into his fingers, his nails glowing a soft green.

What had the hanyou done?

His ire burned. Why couldn't he remember?

InuYasha's possible actions did _not_ explain his headache, though, Sesshomaru knew, and for the life of him, he couldn't remember what he'd done. He had the feeling that he'd done _something_ that had caused Kagome to react, and he had the feeling also that he'd known it would cause a violent reaction of _some_ kind.

Sesshomaru stood up, ignoring the throbbing pain in his temples, and walked to the edge of the forest. He looked down silently at Rin and Jaken, who looked up at him, apprehensive, and without warning, he smashed his hand into a tree.

"Sesshomaru-sama!"

"My lord!"

Sesshomaru ignored their cries of alarm, and he lifted his hand to his face, licking the blood of casually as he leveled them with his gaze.

"Jaken," he said, eyes sharp. "Find the location of the miko. Take Rin with you. Rin, discover just what is it that Kagome is thinking and what she plans to do."

Both nodded hurriedly and scurried off, casting worried glances back at him through the trees. Sesshomaru licked the remaining blood from his hand, pensive, staring out into the dismal fog.

Hours later, when the rain had finally stopped, Jaken and Rin returned, bringing with them fish and some sort of bundle that smelled of food. Sesshomaru listened as Jaken told him that the InuYasha was still absent, off with his undead companion, and none of the rest of his party had felt the motivation to start slogging through the mud.

As Jaken set about starting a fire, drying sticks and logs with his staff of two heads, Rin took Sesshomaru aside, quietly explaining that Kagome planned to meet with him that night. She also told him how she planned to teach him a new element, and to acknowledge something unsaid in the open as well.

Sesshomaru nodded at the news, and let Rin scurry off to help Jaken prepare the evening meal. He sat in silence, eyes sharp, waiting, watching as the sun sank below the ground.

After a long time, an ear twitched, and a scent floated to him on the breeze. Without a sound, Sesshomaru stood, leaving his ward and retainer sleeping behind him as he moved off into the far woods.

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_Oh, this is not a good idea..._

It had been a miserable day. Although Miroku had kept his word and kept her secret private, it had been obvious to Sango and Shippo that something significant had occurred during the previous night. Shippo had needled her incessantly all morning to tell him, worried, while Sango had at least remained silent, opting to let Kagome dwell in quiet. The rain had soaked them all, leaving them shivering and miserable until Kagome got a fire burning steadily, the irony of it smirking at her in the flames.

Something was going to change with her and Sesshomaru, she knew, and she knew that it _had_ to change. It was too far gone to rein it back in at this point, and all she could do was hope and pray that it wouldn't leave them too badly burned when it left them behind.

Kagome was counting on Sesshomaru to have forgotten the precise events of the night before. She wasn't exactly sure how to go about arousing fire, but she'd felt it the previous night, she knew. She was hoping that if she managed to reenact what had happened, Sesshomaru would react the same way.

Her face flamed as she remembered the look in Sesshomaru's eyes, and she pushed the thought out of her mind. This time, she'd make sure that she responded correctly and could keep her powers in check.

That is, if Sesshomaru wasn't so livid at her for knocking him out he killed her on sight.

As the rain stopped, evening finally fading into night, Kagome stood, leaving her pack on the ground, and began to walk into the woods.

"Kagome."

She turned, and Miroku's eye caught her own.

He hesitated.

"Be careful," he said finally, and Kagome knew the unspoken meaning laden in his words.

"I'll try," she said, offering him a faint smile, and he nodded and sat back down. Taking a deep breath, Kagome walked into the woods, waiting until she was a ways from her own camp before letting her mask slip, letting her scent filter through on the breeze.

Kagome stood in the forest, moving until she found a small clearing, about the size of her room at home. She shivered slightly and set about making a fire in the middle, piling logs and rocks high.

It was crackling cheerfully by the time Sesshomaru arrived. His eyes were riveted on her, responding to the silent summons, watching as she added small twigs to the blaze.

"Kagome."

"Sesshomaru," Kagome said in return. She tossed the last few sticks into the flames as she stood up, turning to face him. His mouth opened.

"Kagome, what happened last night? I don't remember anything past-"

"Ssshh..." Kagome said, and Sesshomaru broke off, surprise clearly written across his features. She looked at him silently, and Sesshomaru stood still, confusion flickering in his eyes.

Kagome bit her lip, uncertain. Looking at Sesshomaru like this, it... she knew she was going to have to do it – she could practically feel a fire burning inside of her _already_, but it was so dangerous... she didn't want to lose Sesshomaru by acknowledging the odd emotion that had arisen between them.

He tilted his head at her, eyes flickering with concern, and Kagome nearly gasped at the soft emotion from the taiyoukai, and something slid into place in her mind.

Tossing her head freely, Kagome fanned herself with a hand idly.

"It's so hot here, isn't it?" she said, fanning herself, exaggerating the heat. "I only meant to warm up this clearing a bit and dry out the place before you came, but it was just too much, I think. It's so hot now..."

"Kagome, I think you are slightly overreacting..." Sesshomaru's words trailed off as he saw her untuck her shirt, twisting it into two ends and tying it in a knot behind her, baring a smooth, tanned midriff to his eyes. She saw him swallow from across the fire, and she smiled.

"It's just so _hot_, Sesshomaru," she complained, tossing her hair again. "I'm sooooo glad that I packed a summer uniform – my normal one has long sleeves, you know, and it's way too warm to be wearing _that_ heavy thing right now, don't you think?" She sat down, removing her shoes and slowly rolling down her socks, setting them aside, watching as Sesshomaru's eyes followed her hands down her legs.

"Aren't _you_ hot?" she asked, fanning herself again, innocent eyes meeting his, and Sesshomaru nodded wordlessly, silently removing his armor and setting it aside at the edge of the trees. "Take off your kimono, too," Kagome prompted, gesturing, and abruptly Sesshomaru's eyes returned to normal, darting up to meet her own.

"Kagome," he said, his voice deep and low. "What are you playing at? I don't know what you are doing-"

"Take off your kimono, Sesshomaru," Kagome told him, moving to his side to help push it off his frame. "It's too hot to keep on. After all, we're going to be playing with fire, after all."

Sesshomaru allowed her to slowly remove the garment as she spoke, his eyes suddenly sharpening. He caught her hand, eyes boring into her own.

"Fire?" he said, his voice low. Kagome felt her breath catch, and she nodded.

"Fire."

Sesshomaru let her go. After a moment, he pushed the rest of his kimono from his shoulders, letting it fall to the ground, baring his chest to her gaze. Kagome's eyes took in the lean muscle and sculpted abs, greedy, watching as he turned to fold his kimono and set it aside. Briefly wishing his hakama were just a _wee_ bit tighter, Kagome shook her head sharply, forcing her mind to come back.

"We're going to be learning fire," Kagome told him, moving back to the other side of the flames. Sesshomaru followed, approaching the fire but standing opposite from her of it, watching.

"_We?_"

"I already understand fire," Kagome told him, circling the fire slowly, Sesshomaru moving to remain across from her at all times. "But fire is the element of raw emotions, those not fully understood. With each new raw emotion felt, a new type of fire comes as well, and you have to experience it whether you want to or not."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. Kagome's eyes met his over the flames, drops of sweat beading on her brow.

"Sesshomaru," she said, her voice low, a caress. "Tell me: what happened last night?"

Kagome watched as Sesshomaru stiffened, immediately on guard. His eyes sharpened, his gaze venomous.

"I told you, I cannot recall," Sesshomaru said curtly, his voice and expression guarded. It was Kagome's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"Surely you remember _something_," she said. "What do you remember? Anything at all."

Sesshomaru frowned and his forehead creased slightly as he lost himself in thought. "I remember a little..." he said slowly. His eyes found hers once more, and he hesitated. "I remember the hanyou did something upsetting."

"Good, good," Kagome encouraged. "Do you remember what happened after that?"

She watched as Sesshomaru considered, thinking hard, mentally shaking her head. That sort of disconnected, dispassionate memory wasn't going to help at all. Quiet, she moved toward him, stopping only when she was directly in front of him, standing on the same side of the fire. He looked down at her, a question in his eyes as he shook his head minutely. "I cannot."

Kagome shrugged, eyes glittering. "Then we'll reenact it."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened, but Kagome had launched into her lines.

"-And, of _course_, it was all about _you_, and InuYasha blew a gasket, of course, and started doing all kinds of stupid things-"

Kagome's voice was laden with annoyance and repressed fury, her anger at InuYasha and her indignation at his actions. Almost without realizing it, Sesshomaru felt himself slip into place.

"It was about me?" he asked, cutting her off, and Kagome nodded, rolling her eyes, not missing a beat.

"Of _course_. You're all we've been fighting about recently. It's almost boring, really. _Kagome, he's evil, he'll hurt you, he makes me feel small and insignificant, he made fun of me as a baby, wahh wahh wahh blah blah blah-"_

Sesshomaru was unable to suppress a smirk. "I see what you mean."

"Tell me about it," Kagome said, sighing, and Sesshomaru was startled to see the depth of her sorrow in her. This had already happened, it had been last night – surely she couldn't still be feeling so upset-?

"Kagome," he said, pausing, faltering as she looked up at him. "You seem more... distressed, over this argument, than is usual for you. If you've been arguing about this often, what- what made this argument any different?"

"Ah." Kagome looked away, her voice more subdued. "Tonight, we got to the bottom of why he has such an issue in the first place."

Sesshomaru was careful with his reply. "Oh?"

"Yeah," Kagome said, looking down at her feet, and Sesshomaru felt his chest tug at him, somehow disturbed at seeing her so upset. "He was all 'I'm supposed to protect you'! And 'You're only supposed to depend on me!' and-"

"-that's different than what you thought before?" Sesshomaru interrupted, unable to help himself.

Kagome sighed. "Not really," she admitted. "But- well, I thought it was sort of a rational fear for his friend before." She hesitated, kicking her foot idly on the ground. "It wasn't, though. The idiot yelled at me and grabbed me and-"

She stopped, looking into the fire, the flames reflecting in her eyes.

"..._And?_" Sesshomaru prompted, an odd feeling of emotion coming to surface in his own eyes.

"And- you know," Kagome said, fidgeting. "Showed me. That it wasn't just a 'friend' thing to him at all."

Kagome watched as dark emotions and anger flitted across Sesshomaru's face, and she steeled herself, readying herself for the moment she knew would come. She was ready now, to face this fire, regardless of how badly she got burned.

"Tell me," Sesshomaru demanded, eyes sharp. "What did he do to you?"

"Nothing, really," Kagome said, echoing her words from the night before. "It was nothing he hasn't done before, but it still makes me mad-"

She trailed her fingers over her lips, watching as recognition flared in Sesshomaru's eyes. She smiled to herself grimly, before immersing herself in the replay of the previous night, letting all the emotions from that night fill her – her anger at InuYasha, her alarm at Sesshomaru's sharp tone and demanding questions, her uncertainty at why she was secretly so glad he was so insistent to know.

"He kissed you, didn't he?" An irate statement, laden with hatred at his half-brother. "He kissed you."

Quietly, while Kagome was caught up in the flood of memories, part of her hung back, silently waiting for the moment when Sesshomaru's fire would break free once more.

"You remembered," she said, surprise tinging her tone. "I taught it to you ages ago."

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Sesshomaru had known for a while that he'd somehow let this slip of a girl slip underneath his skin. He'd tried to dismiss it as an effect from learning to feel a bit more and letting emotions slip out as he tried to learn each element, each bit of emotion binding him closer to the girl. It wasn't, though, and Sesshomaru knew it. It was something else entirely, some new, electrifying feeling, an entirely new emotion for him to push down.

It was new to feel so helpless and angry, to feel so much in so little a time. He didn't like it at all – emotions still made him vulnerable, emotions still made you weak – but he couldn't _stop_ feeling, even if he managed to push it down most of the time. It was like a parasite, eating him alive from the inside, the occasional sharp pain from inside reminding him of the toxic emotion that boiled inside.

It was _dangerous _to him. Several times, Sesshomaru had felt himself on the verge of something, dangling over the precipice, ready to hurl himself off, Kagome in his arms. He'd always managed to pull back, though, or the moment had always passed him by. He wasn't sure what he _would_ do if such a moment came and stayed, so Sesshomaru pushed it out of his mind, vowing to be stronger.

But now. Kagome.

Kagome was in front of him, illuminated in the firelight, and he could feel his heart clench as he looked at her, amber gaze caressing the lines of her face. But then she had said that, said how the hanyou had grabbed her and forced her, and something came boiling up inside of him that _wouldn't_ go away, that _refused_ to be silent any longer, and Sesshomaru found himself helpless against the full onslaught.

"Did he kiss you?"

His thoughts spiraled, forming a whirlwind, rationality and tact lost in the hurricane. A tornado of pain and fury spun through his mind, and Sesshomaru was dimly able to see Kagome's eyes widen in surprise.

"Did he _kiss_ you??"

His rage was undefinable; he had no reason to be so upset. It was anger from the past, but it came swarming back, overwhelming him, emotions from the previous night sweeping over him in fiery waves of rage. It wasn't his business what the miko did, or the hanyou, it wasn't his place to care. But he _did_ care, he cared so much he could feel it screaming inside of him at her words, killing him, that the _hanyou_ would have felt her touch-

"_Did_ he kiss you? Did that obsolete, filthy piece of vermin kiss you? Did he?!"

Even through the haze of emotions clouding his mind, Sesshomaru could feel Kagome's stare of shock, and he was helpless to compose himself, to take back his demanding, naked words.

Kagome swallowed once, hard.

"...yes."

Sesshomaru let out an unearthly noise, thoughts ripping through his mind. InuYasha had no right, no place being so close to this precious girl and touching her like that and claiming such a thing from her _ever_, let alone when she didn't want it and was clearly upset with him for doing so. _No one_ should ever touch her like that, _no one _save for _him_, he was the only one who was truly her equal, he was the only one who was allowed to have her close and see her eyes and have her react over-

He had no idea why he was like this. It didn't make any sense, it was just a girl, just a stupid girl who was teaching him, but it _did_, she meant everything, it all made sense and she wasn't just a stupid girl she was so much more-

He pulled her to him, fiery amber clashing with her blue eyes, and somewhere inside of him, a decision was made.

It would change everything; all his hiding, all his dodging, all his suppressing and and pushing emotion down. All his composure, all his practice, all his work at the careful friendship they had formed. Everything would change forever, he knew and he was helpless against the wave of that change that crashed into him.

"Kagome."

He could hear her swallow, he was so close. He could feel the small trill that went through her at his touch, see her eyes widen slightly, her pupils dilating, irises darkening.

"Yes?"

Sesshomaru looked at her for a long moment, rationality making one last battle to rise to the top, but it was cruelly buried underneath the torrent of this emotion, the anger and rage and _something_ that was swarming inside of him. The decision had cut away any restraints, anything he had been holding back before-

"He never. Will. Again."

And then he kissed her, pouring everything he felt into the kiss.

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It was like tinder catching fire.

Heat surged through Kagome as she came alive underneath him, kissing him back for all she was worth. A hand of hers scrambled on his chest, finally grabbing a hold of his shoulder and hanging on as Sesshomaru plundered her mouth, emotion and heat searing through her skull. It was wild, it was primal, and it send a feeling of liquid heat through her veins, engulfing her, making her feel a fire burn within.

He nipped at her lips and she whimpered, and as he licked over the bite her whimper turned into a moan.

He grabbed her head and buried a hand in her hair, the other holding the back of her head, keeping her mouth pressed to his, and Kagome lost her balance, falling backwards and rolling down a short hill. And Sesshomaru was with her, limbs entangled with hers, kissing her still, possessive and fiery and unable to stop, even as the hill rolled them back into the forest, finally evening out between the trees.

Kagome was wrenched from Sesshomaru's arms by the sheer force of their momentum, landing with a hard "umph!". Mind dizzy, Kagome stood slowly, rubbing her backside as she turned, before freezing, gaze fallen on Sesshomaru, several feet away.

Sesshomaru was in a low crouch, animal-like, predatory, his eyes fixed on her with a fire burning inside. He slowly rose to his feet, eyes never flickering from her face, and he moved toward her, his gaze pinning her where she stood.

He came to stand in front of her, looking down at her as she looked up at him. Their eyes met, and Kagome gasped at the depth of emotion she saw burning inside. Before she had time to blink, he'd swept her off her feet and jumped back into the small clearing, setting her down at the side of the fire. He took a step back, eyes holding hers with their intensity.

"What is this?" Sesshomaru demanded, his eyes boring into hers. "Tell me. What is this now that I feel?"

Kagome felt helpless under the weight of his gaze.

"I don't know," she murmured, without thinking through the words. "That's the point of it, isn't it? Fire's not understood."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at that, and Kagome felt her something in her midsection twinge at his look.

"That's what this is," she said, her heart racing. "It's fire. The unknown emotion, consuming us both as we feel. We both feel it because we don't know _what_ we feel, and we can't think about it, just react."

Sesshomaru stared at her, amber eyes searching her own, and Kagome took his hand, holding it up to her own.

"See?" she said. "Fire."

Sesshomaru's gaze finally lowered to their hands, and Kagome looked as well, her heart still pounding in her chest. Droplets of fire flitted around their hands, dancing over the skin without burning, but she could feel their heat all the same. Sesshomaru's eyes jerked up to hers, and Kagome instinctively stepped back, but Sesshomaru's hand darted out and grabbed her wrist, holding her still. Eyes wide, Kagome looked up at him, his amber gaze boring down on her once more.

"If this is fire," Sesshomaru said, his voice low and primal, eyes flickering, "I do not like it at all. No emotion shall ravage me unless I give it permission to do so, least of all one that envelops another in with me as well."

Kagome shuddered, hearing the vulnerable undertones in his words. She wrapped her arms around his neck to comfort herself. His thoughts eerily echoed her own.

"You can't," she told him. "You can't control this. You can only feel. You're helpless to fire – you have to let it burn."

Sesshomaru growled and suddenly his lips were pressed against hers again, the kiss searing through them both. The both paused and gasped, liquid eyes melting into each other, before they came back in a forceful flurry of tangled arms and lips, trying to get closer to the other one still.

Kagome could feel the emotion scorching through her; it felt like flames were dancing over her skin. There was liquid fire in her veins, and a bright flame flaring to life in her heart. She pulled away from him, gasping for breath, pupils dilated as she took him in. He growled, his lips attacking her neck as he kissed her heatedly, and Kagome gasped, eyes rolling back as a wave of fire went through her once more.

This was fire, Kagome realized dimly, the real fire that she'd only flirted with before. The teasing touches of the element when she was on the feather, talking with Sesshomaru at the table or even alone thinking back on the taiyoukai lord... _nothing_ could have prepared her fully for the onslaught of everything she felt ravaging through her inside. She could feel it now, flickers of flame dancing over her skin from Sesshomaru's lips as he kissed her neck deeply, nicking slightly with his teeth, leaving red marks behind. Fire danced from her own hand down his back, disappearing under his kimono, and with a sudden move that left even her surprised, Kagome pushed Sesshomaru over hard, sending them both sprawling onto the ground, Sesshomaru on his back.

He looked up at her in surprise, and Kagome only smirked as she lowered her mouth to his neck, trailing kisses over him, running a hand over his shoulder, down his arm, teasing, her eyes flashing in triumph as Sesshomaru let out a strangled groan. She sat back up, straddling his stomach, running her hands up his chest, weaving her fingers into his hair.

Sesshomaru growled and rolled over suddenly, pinning her to the ground. A small sound of surprised escaped from Kagome, and Sesshomaru stared into her eyes, amber boring into her own.

"What is this?" Sesshomaru asked again, his voice low, laden with things unsaid. Kagome's eyes widened at the tone in his voice. "What _is _this?" he asked again, and Kagome could find no reply.

"I don't _know_."

Sesshomaru growled and pulled her face up to his, kissing her violently, gripping her head firmly in his hands. He kissed her hard until they were both panting, before finally letting her go, leaving them both trying to catch their breath, sitting up on the forest floor.

"What is this?" Sesshomaru's voice was hoarse. "I want to kill InuYasha for touching you. I want to clasp you to me and never let you go. I want to be with you and stay with you and protect you. I want to kill anyone who looks at you, anyone who wants to do you harm."

Kagome fell still. The sense of fire faded, and something new slowly started to flow within.

"You say that like it surprises you," she said finally, her voice rough. "You love to kill all sorts of people."

Sesshomaru looked up to meet her eyes again, emotions tangling and swirling inside.

"I've _never_ killed for another," he said, watching her. "I've killed only for myself, or for political purpose. Why do I want to kill for you? Why do I want to hunt everyone down that has ever caused you pain? And why do I want to stay with you always, and never have you leave my side? Why do I want to bind you to me so you can never let go?" His voice grew more intense as he spoke, anguish inside his eyes. "Tell me you feel it. Tell me you know what I mean. You must feel it too, this fire between us. You _must _feel it too-"

"I do," Kagome said hastily, hoping to reassure him. "I do. I know exactly what you mean. It's just- I-"

She trailed off, words escaping her, and somewhere inside of her, something slowly began moving into place.

"I want you to be there for me," Kagome said quietly, her eyes not meeting Sesshomaru's. "I want you to be there always, and I never want you to go. I want you to hold me and talk with me and be with me all the time." She looked up at him, meeting his eyes, her voice laden with raw emotion. "I want you to teach me everything there is to know, and I want you to show me the world. I want to help you through your pain, and I want to be there when you need comfort. I want to wrap myself around you so you can't escape from me, and I want you to never let me go." Her voice grew in intensity, and somewhere, she felt it start to drizzle.

"I want to be with you always," she told him, his eyes holding hers. "I want to have you, I want to hold you. I want you there during all my good times, and I want you at my side for all of the bad."

Kagome choked, suddenly realizing her words and the gravity of them. She laughed, starting to cry, her emotions pouring out.

"Kagome?" Sesshomaru said, his voice suddenly concerned. "Kagome? What's wrong?"

Kagome only laughed slightly through her tears, feeling hysterical. She felt it start to rain, drops hitting her face and arms.

"Don't you get it yet?" she asked, looking up at him honestly. "I want to have you and hold you, for better or for worse." She laughed, choking on her tears, reciting. "For richer or for poorer, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, for all the days of my life."

"Kagome?" Sesshomaru said, his eyes wide with confusion. "Kagome-?"

Kagome laughed freely, tears coursing down her cheeks. It all made sense now- the fire, the emotions, the cascade of whirlwind feelings when his lips had touched hers-

"Kagome, if you are feeling hysterical, maybe we should postpone this lesson for-"

Kagome reached up, pressing a finger to his lips, cutting him off, as her eyes meeting his.

"I love you," she said. "Love. That's what this feeling is."

The clouds opened up, rain falling in sheets, covering taiyoukai and miko in torrential downpour. Sesshomaru moved instinctively, covering Kagome from the rain, holding her as they looked up into the clouds.

"This understanding," Kagome said quietly. "This realization I feel. This is water."

Sesshomaru didn't look at her, his gaze instead fixed on the clouds as he held her to his side. A small feeling of something inside him needled at him, pricking the edges of his mind.

Quietly, so as not to the disturb the girl in his arms, Sesshomaru flicked his fingers at the wet grass, a small fire flickering up on command. His eyes hardened as he looked at the girl in his arms, a different sort of realization shifting into place in his eyes.

No water had come to put _his _fire out, the notion flicking across his mind.

Amber eyes grew slitted.

But he would find something that would.

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Dun, dun dun dunnnnn...

What did you think of the chapter? What did you like? What did you hate? What do you think will happen next? Please, review! I'd love to know what each reader thought of the chapter. Please, review!


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